NCLT - Collectibles Surviving Beyond The Upcoming Cashless Society?

This thread is aging but it is interesting to touch base once in a while and look at where we stand in terms of cash usage.

A recent article published on visualcapitalist.com reports that cash transactions in 2022 represented only 18% of all transactions in the US, down from 31% in 2018. This downward trend was definitely accentuated during COVID, but we can anticipate further declines of about 2% per year.

Last month, we celebrated our daughter's graduation at the ASU Stadium and to our surprise they did not accept cash at the food stand. Apparently, this is becoming the norm.

Obviously, fewer people using cash and coins will inevitably affect future generations of coin collectors.

Re: Redlock:

I live in Ottawa, Canada and use my debit card for most purchases, however, I have never been refused when using cash, anywhere. I always carry cash since every once in a while (snow storms mostly) the power goes out and the grocery store, etc. then rely on cash. Similar experiences in Montreal, Quebec.
Some people in the service and handy-man industries prefer cash. (non reported income).
Just last week the card machines went out at the golf course and all had to pay cash, no problems.

For what it is worth, a major venue in my area went cashless on April 23rd.

https://www.wyff4.com/article/downt...icy/60501397

I wanted to add in my previous post... it seems that the places that had "No Cash" signs up during the pandemic have now removed them.

I am surprised at how many coin show dealers now take electronic payments. I remember for years there was only one guy who did, but now it seems almost all will — especially now that the payment industry allows vendors to add a "convenience charge" to cover their fees.


It is and has been for years. That is why all the latest browser versions are boasting of privacy features to stop tracking (or at least make it more difficult).

In my opinion, the markets are pushing the move from cash more than governments — remember, they make money making money! We will continue on the path to cashless as more vendors and shoppers embrace the convenience. I still believe cash will outlast our generations (Boomer, X, Y, maybe Z), but will probably be gone before the next one reaches retirement.

Ah, yes, we went to DC last Thanksgiving and Arlington was the first place we stopped on the way in. There was a sign going in saying no cash for parking. I wonder if some rapscallion removed it on your visit!

I apologize for migrating off topic, canadian_coins.

It's largely the banks that are leading the charge to go cashless. Banks are the ones who lose the most when handling cash: they have to pay to store it and transport it around, they have to pay tellers to handle it... and the mere possibility of withdrawing all your money as physical cash is what is preventing the banks from implementing their holy grail: negative interest rates.

Banks really, really would have liked to have had the ability to charge negative rates during the recent financial crisis, when everybody's rates were already effectively at zero and zero interest rates weren't fixing the problem. As it stands now, if any bank dared to try charging negative rates, it would be suicidal for that bank - people would simply withdraw all their cash (because getting 0% interest on physical cash under the mattress is still better than negative interest), and that bank's assets would plummet to near-zero. Eliminate that possibility by eliminating any form in which one could remove one's savings from the banking system entirely, and negative interest rates become feasible.

Anyway, back to the OP's old original question: what would happen to NCLT coin issuing if physical cash disappeared?

I strongly suspect the answer would be "privatization". Without the need to churn out large quantities of circulating coin, governments do not need to own large factories for coin production. And with only small orders of NCLT to fulfil, governments would quickly discover that they don't need to own a mint at all. Most smaller countries already don't own their own mint, but subcontract out both NCLT and circulating coinage production to foreign mints, awarding the contract to the lowest bidder. As global coin production volume shrinks, more and more countries would join the "we don't need our own mint" crowd. Ultimately, just a half-dozen privatized and quasi-privatized mints would be left on the planet, making everybody's NCLT coinage.

Some comments in this thread have said "bullion coins would continue". I don't think so. I agree bullion products would continue, but I highly doubt that government-issued bullion coins would. People who want/need bullion don't really care what form the bullion is in, so long as it's liquidity isn't an issue. I foresee the only bullion being issued at such a time would be the bullion rounds and ingots being made by and in the name of the privatized mint corporations, rather than by governments. Consider: if the government doesn't own the mint, then they have to pay through the nose for bullion coin production: they have to buy the bullion, then contract out all of the design and production process - all with no "circulating coinage production" to subsidize the costs. There's no way this can happen and still result in a coin with a final sale price anywhere near "bullion value", so a government bullion coin would need to have a substantial premium to remain profitable. And with coin collectors essentially having gone extinct along with coinage itself, who would want to pay any kind of premium for bullion in a particular form? No-one.

For what it is worth, I consider banks a part of the market. And they certainly have major sway in directing market forces.


Indeed. It was indicated earlier that without coins the LT in NCLT becomes meaningless. Collectibles would no longer be NCLT. Instead, be ready to embrace privately minted medals and other exonumia products.

Fwiw, basically all major venues around here (baseball, hockey, music, concert, etc.) have gone cashless. I think one of the major problems it solves is that when you don't have cash, your employees can't be tempted by it. It also eliminates food contamination from handling cash and food interchangeably. And let's be honest, a lot of employees can no longer make change with coins.