In 2023, Thailand shifted away from cash just as Sweden asked to see it protected

[Andrew65]

1 minute ago, retarius said:

There is huge danger in abandoning cash for cards produced by private firms or by government. You will soon be held to ransom by huge fees and or taxes you don't understand that you will be paying. When you complain you will be told, "you have no rights, we are not a bank, we can add fees in any way we see fit, and if you complain again we'll cut off your credit, so shut yer gob!!!!" Yes it would be nice to have the choice of cash or credit so if the credit card company screws you, you can always use cash. VISA/MC have had a campaign for years in the US and other large markets, trying to persuade businesses not to accept cash, and only to accept cards (you can clearly see where that is heading). And governments are only too eager to help, they benefit from reduced tax fraud.

I was told years ago at school that any sum owed can be settled in cash because cash is always legal tender....in some places it is not! Caveat emptor.

In Thailand it's possible for a vendor to charge you 2 or 3% for using plastic, in the UK they're not allowed to do that, AFAIK.

[retarius]

2 minutes ago, Andrew65 said:

In Thailand it's possible for a vendor to charge you 2 or 3% for using plastic, in the UK they're not allowed to do that, AFAIK.

I haven't lived in the UK since 1985, so I'm no expert on what they allowed to do. I didn't think an airline would be able to charge you for selecting a seat or checking a piece of luggage. Effectively credit card companies want to tax every purchase you make through their fees. I can almost guarantee you that their fees will increase when there are an oligopoly of huge US companies donating the market, and if something like adding fees is against the law, they will ensure that the law is changed. 

[Mark Nothing]

Henry Ford had a good quote about central bankers  exploits plundering the people's money.

 

"It is well enough that people don't understand our banking and  monetary system, for if they did, I believe there would be a revolution before morning."

 

It is the most profitable endeavor ever created.  And this just makes it more profitable.  Guess who gets to pay even more?

 

 

[Bravoxray]

44 minutes ago, BigBruv said:

As Truss said, if you can sack the PM but NOT the head of the Central Bank (who has an AWFUL performance record) who is really in charge? (see pic below for the correct answer)

Since the subject at hand is about total control of the masses by banning cash vs keeping cash, it is irrelevant who is running the show.  The people will become slaves without some privacy in their daily lives, and going completely cashless will facilitate that enslavement. 

[observer90210]

Digital has it's advantages as it avoids getting cheated with the wrong change and avoids having to carry bags full of cash all over. But cash rules nevertheless beacause if one day somebody pulls the plug from the internet and digital networks, the cashless gurus will be left stranded in the dark of the soapy ladyboy saloon !!

[metisdead]

A post using ALL CAPS has been removed, please turn off your Caps Lock when posting. 

[BigBruv]

46 minutes ago, Bravoxray said:

Since the subject at hand is about total control of the masses by banning cash vs keeping cash, it is irrelevant who is running the show.  The people will become slaves without some privacy in their daily lives, and going completely cashless will facilitate that enslavement. 

 

Yep, by that logic we have zero agency + we're all gonna die so why not just give in & join our local 'flying clubs'?

 

 

But back in the real world we still have the option to use cash and support cash only businesses.

Everyone can do their bit.

Use it or lose it.

 

 

[al valio]

6 hours ago, farang51 said:

Sorry, if this is a stupid question. I see many write about QR codes and phones; is it not possible to pay using contact free payment with the chip on a credit card?

 

In Denmark, which I believe was the frontrunner in digital payment, not Sweden, we use contact less payment with a credit card. Very fast and very convenient.

Yes, back home in Europe I also use contactless debit card payment all the time.

 

But for that the vendor needs a terminal and to pay the fees to the credit card companies. 

 

That's why instead the QR code payment is used in Thailand (and many other countries): The shop just needs to print the QR code and have a smartphone. So any small shop can use it.

[Conno]

13 hours ago, BritScot said:

One thing I have realised over the past few years is how stupid people are. Accepting lockdowns and in the uk publicly telling people they were using Phyops against their own people a fact that still disgusts me (being ex army). Then watch people sleep walking into digital currency  with the power banks and governments already welding. I tokenly carry an oz silver coin in my pocket to remind myself its real value and not made up. Everyone should read about the Bradbury pound (it scared the hell out of the Bank of England because it had real value).

Convid also scared the living daylights out of me too and not due to something that had a 99.3% survival rate, but because of the mindless obedience to authority displayed by the vast majority. The cashless society is all about control masquerading as convenience, so for heavens sake people learn something from your 2020-2023 experience. Be prepared as they are going to push the CBDCs narrative just as they did the 'pandemic'. I prefer to call CBDCs slave coins, as that is exactly what they will be if we lose the cash option. If you think this is all some conspiracy theory you may not have noticed that most of those theories from the past 4 years are regularly turning into facts these days. Fiat paper is bad enough given the unlimited printing, debt and increasing restrictions associated with carrying it, but if you think it's bad now, just wait until we are all corralled into a CBDC only world. 

[richard_smith237]

2 hours ago, Andrew65 said:

In Thailand it's possible for a vendor to charge you 2 or 3% for using plastic, in the UK they're not allowed to do that, AFAIK.

 

I think its also illegal in Thailand too....   But that doesn't stop them...     

 

At least its more honest.....

 

I wanted to max out 1.2MB my credit card on a car so I could get loads of points (which = airmiles - I was paying in cash anyway)...  unfortunately, the dealership wanted to to take 3% extra for the card feeds.... 

 

In other area's that allow for card payment I suspect they've added the 3% already, even if you are paying cash. 

[Conno]

5 hours ago, sambum said:

 

"Phyops"? I'm from the UK and never heard of it - mind there are more acronyms flying around these days than 737's!

 

Googled it and it came up with nothing for "Phyops" - but it had this:- 

https://www.google.com/search?Psychological operations (PSYOP) are operations to convey selected information and indicators to audiences to influence their motives and objective reasoning%2C

 

 

Maybe you should have used a different search term. Behavioral Science. PSYOP in every sense of the term. The push for a cashelss society may involve a different subject matter but the techniques used will be very similar. 

 

https://theconversation.com/coronavirus-how-the-uk-government-is-using-behavioural-science-134097

 

https://www.bmj.com/content/380/bmj.p652

[LetsGoJoe]

So why has Sweden suddenly become the crusader of 'cash-protection'? 

A few months back a book became available for free-download to the public domain called The Great Taking, by David Rogers Webb, a very dark prediction of what may come to pass in the global financial markets, in the not so distant future. This book has apparently seriously spooked the investment & portfolio management world. The author is an American who moved to Sweden and bought a small farm. In 2011 he had a meeting with the Swedish Minister and State Secretary for Financial Markets outlining the disturbing patterns arising in the financial markets and the apparent sinister objective being pursued. Connecting the dots now, I have to wonder if this 'cash-protection' scheme from the Swedes is directly or indirectly related to the author and his book..?

It's a disturbing read, recommended to anyone who is concerned about protecting their financial future.

 

 

[neeray]

14 hours ago, BritScot said:

One thing I have realised over the past few years is how stupid people are. Accepting lockdowns and in the uk publicly telling people they were using Phyops against their own people a fact that still disgusts me (being ex army). Then watch people sleep walking into digital currency  with the power banks and governments already welding. I tokenly carry an oz silver coin in my pocket to remind myself its real value and not made up. Everyone should read about the Bradbury pound (it scared the hell out of the Bank of England because it had real value).

"One thing I have realised over the past few years is how stupid people are."   What took you so long ???

[JoseThailand]

Oh yeah, shifted from cash. 7-11 still don't accept credit cards for payments below 200 baht. That's what is called cashless society?

[spidermike007]

13 hours ago, dinsdale said:

Isn't using the bank's app real online banking? As for @spidermike007 can only agree 100% about waiting for some dozy person to go through their phone and then work out all over again how to work the app. It's like watching someone scrolling through their photos. Of course another thing is the app might be down or the internet might be down and then you're screwed. Cash is my go to but I do use QR codes sometimes.

I think we all take advantage of online payments from time to time, and online wallets, things like that. The point is why wouldn't a person carry around some cash, for contingencies and why wouldn't somebody have 50 or 100 baht in their pocket to buy some coffee?

 

To me that's just another indication of the spectacular weakness of our current generation. 

[spidermike007]

11 hours ago, Mike Lister said:

I think that was very rude and fails to consider where you are. Just because you think 20b is an insignificant amount, doesn't mean the person paying the bill does.

I feel just the opposite, I think it's the correct thing to do and I think it makes a strong statement. Embarrassment can be a very powerful tool in Thailand, you're holding up the entire line, do you have any consciousness of that?

 

Carry some cash with you for God's sake, just in case something goes wrong, in case your app's not working, in case, in case, in case, in case. Please just apply common sense. 

[lordgrinz]

9 minutes ago, spidermike007 said:

I think we all take advantage of online payments from time to time, and online wallets, things like that. The point is why wouldn't a person carry around some cash, for contingencies and why wouldn't somebody have 50 or 100 baht in their pocket to buy some coffee?

 

To me that's just another indication of the spectacular weakness of our current generation. 

 

Not sure I would even leave the house with only 50-100 baht, I want at least a thousand and more like 3 thousand, just in case.

[spidermike007]

1 minute ago, lordgrinz said:

 

Not sure I would even leave the house with only 50-100 baht, I want at least a thousand and more like 3 thousand, just in case.

You have practicality, you have common sense, and you are intelligent. Unfortunately not everybody is blessed with those qualities. 

[neeray]

10 hours ago, Lacessit said:

I tend to favor the principle of Keep It Simple, Stupid. ( KISS )

I prefer "Keep It Stupidly Simple".

[spidermike007]

8 hours ago, newbee2022 said:

I think it's a matter of age. 

Spidermike reached already an age where it's not so easy anymore to work with your mobile phone typing numbers and pressing the right button with clumsy fingers. In addition he needs his reading glasses. But what happens if he can't remember where there are? 

So he decided to go out with some thousand Baht notes in his pocket knowing that his bill for coffee and cake will never exceed this amount. He would hand over the note and would receive the change with a smile.

This is a real man's attitude and behaviour, isn't it?

Sorry, Spidermike, I'm just joking 🥳🤣🤗☺️. It's not any personal thing. I wish you all the best.

I've certainly reached an age where I have common sense, and I like to about allow for multiple variables, a poor internet connection, the app is down, who knows what all the variables are? For me, my question is not how much to carry but why on earth would anyone leave home without a wad of cash in their pocket? 

[spidermike007]

9 hours ago, Jonathan Swift said:

You're in the wrong country if you're so impatient and entitled that you can't stand to wait in a 7-11 line for a few extra minutes. I'll bet when someone is waiting for hot food it must drive you batty. I myself have Parkinson's disease and it takes some time for me to fumble with money, so I step away from the register in case anyone else needs the cashier. But not once have I ever gotten a side eye from anyone behind me as I fumbled away. If it had been you behind me you might have accidentally caught my elbow in your solar plexus. What are you in a hurry for? Always got some place important to be? More important than everyone else? If you think your patience is so wrongly being overtaxed  imagine the patience the Thai people have to have just to deal with you and your demanding ill temper. How you personally like to live is your business, but you have no right to project your opinions and preferences onto the way Thai people conduct their daily lives. It's their country not yours. And you don't sound like a "real man", your attitude is in fact very childish and petulant. ""real man always carry cash". Never heard anything more ridiculous. Real man means a mature adult man who can move through life unfazed by minor events. How about "real" (mature) men don't bother others over trivial things. "Real" Mature men can tolerate life's inconveniences and keep smiling.  Go back where you came from, you give the rest of us happy, patient, respectful foreigners a bad name. 

I hope you feel better now that you got that off your chest, sounds like you were having a rough day. I have a couple of brands of laxatives I could recommend. 

[spidermike007]

10 hours ago, bkk6060 said:

You don't get it Mike.

It is not about the money, it is about the failed technology and time consumption of the digital payment.

She had 20 b in her account, it would be much more efficient to have 20 b in her pocket to pay.

Also, you weren't there and have no idea how pleased she was that I paid for her. 

I totally agree but you have to take into account Mike Lister tends to be a bit of contrarian. 

[MangoKorat]

A hell of a lot of Thai people don't pay tax at all and good proportion of those should but they get paid in cash so they think they can get away with not declaring it.  However, some of them then pay that money into the bank to meet payments on car loans etc.  Some just pay it in because nobody checks.  My ex 's salary (under the tax threshold) was paid directly into her bank whilst her overtime (every week) and annual bonus was paid in cash - which she then paid into the bank 😁.  The strange thing was, this was not a small business, she worked for a major Japanese company - seems they're all at it.

 

It seems that RD checks on ordinary Thai citizens are rare.

 

In the UK 'black money stays black' unless you're stupid because the Tax Authorities can and do regularly carry out checks on people's bank accounts. They can do that without you knowing.

 

However, things seem to be changing in Thailand and the government is looking for additional tax revenue.  Should the Thai authorities start checking the bank accounts of its 'ordinary' citizens, which it very well might, I forecast a rapid reversion to using cash.

[MangoKorat]

And as several major national retailers in the UK found out recently, technology is not reliable.  Gregg's - a confectioners/bakery/sandwich shop with over 2400 stores was hit by a 'glitch' and could not process card payments.  Some stores closed, others only accepted cash.

 

Other retailers have reported similar problems recently.

 

I've never known the £ in my pocket to have a 'glitch'.

 

What is it they say?  Technology's great, until its not.

[CartagenaWarlock]

16 hours ago, spidermike007 said:

In my opinion real man always carry cash. I hope that digital currency never takes over. I love having a wad of cash in my pocket. Always have and always will. 

It definitely feels empowered when you carry $1,000 with you. You feel rich, but I feel more secure when I have access to a million dollars through my credit cards. 

[lordgrinz]

16 minutes ago, CartagenaWarlock said:

It definitely feels empowered when you carry $1,000 with you. You feel rich, but I feel more secure when I have access to a million dollars through my credit cards. 

 

Can I borrow one of these million dollar credit cards? 🤪

[richard_smith237]

5 hours ago, rovinman said:

Absolutely Correct !
More and More countries are going Digital which is enabling them to dictate to the customers anything they want.

Withdraw money at Will from your account, Parking fine, Speeding ticket { without proof in most cases },

Control of the Masses, who are without the Masses of money needed to argue  !

 

Interesting....  Where automatically withdraws parking and speeding fines directly from your Bank Account (with or without proof) ?

[richard_smith237]

28 minutes ago, CartagenaWarlock said:

17 hours ago, spidermike007 said:

In my opinion real man always carry cash. I hope that digital currency never takes over. I love having a wad of cash in my pocket. Always have and always will. 

It definitely feels empowered when you carry $1,000 with you. You feel rich, but I feel more secure when I have access to a million dollars through my credit cards. 

 

 

A real man always carries cash - thats hilarious.... 

Equally so is feeling empowered because you have $1000 in your pocket....

 

I'm reading this thread and the lengths some are going to to justify 'having to carry cash' is quite comical... 

 

 

I do agree with a little cash as backup is sensible... .  1 or 2000 baht and 2 or 3x 100 baht notes cover the bases....

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[spidermike007]

1 hour ago, CartagenaWarlock said:

It definitely feels empowered when you carry $1,000 with you. You feel rich, but I feel more secure when I have access to a million dollars through my credit cards. 

Well, I think anybody would feel some security if they had access to that much money through their cards. 

 

A lot of people in that position would also carry a few thousand baht cash, what's the big deal?

[Andrew65]

4 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

 

I think its also illegal in Thailand too....   But that doesn't stop them...     

 

At least its more honest.....

 

I wanted to max out 1.2MB my credit card on a car so I could get loads of points (which = airmiles - I was paying in cash anyway)...  unfortunately, the dealership wanted to to take 3% extra for the card feeds.... 

 

In other area's that allow for card payment I suspect they've added the 3% already, even if you are paying cash. 

When I used to buy expensive air tickets I would sometimes go to the bank to get the cash and save the 2,000 - 3,000'ish Baht card fee.