4 ms·

Not German, but I simply don't want to leave my trail of what I am spending and where.

by wila 9y ago

eatbitseveryday 9y ago
And what of purchases made on websites?
- Froyoh 9y ago
  Opt for money order, cheques?
- kuschku 9y ago
  As very few Germans even have credit cards, most Germans pay online (if they don’t use PayPal) via SEPA wire transfer or SEPA ELV. And even PayPal and Amazon support using SEPA ELV to pay for stuff.
theEXTORTCIST 9y ago
Was waiting for this comment. I often ask myself, "Do I want any entity to have a copy of the exact dates and amounts of my entire daily consumer activity?". Whether anonymized or not there is a tremendous amount of knowledge that can be gleaned from non-itemized debit card ledgers.
317070 9y ago
I also think/thought like that. But if banks wanted, they could actually track the serial codes on the bills around. And since often cash is used in only 1 hop (so ATM -> you -> shop -> bank) they could know pretty well where you spent your money. A quick reference: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9948081 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9948081 E.g. about China: "According to schedule, by late 2015, the serial number of every Rmb100 note withdrawn from banks by members of the public can be traced."
- jhasse 9y ago
  > But if banks wanted, they could actually track the serial codes on the bills around. And since often cash is used in only 1 hop (so ATM -> you -> shop -> bank) they could know pretty well where you spent your money. That doesn't include how much you spend exactly. And it only works most of the time (what if my money gets used as change for another customer?).
nostromo123 9y ago
Same here. Also, been a couple of times in the situation where either the shop's card terminal was malfunctioning, or the bank had some issues, and the card payment was impossible. Without cash you'd be helpless in such a situation, whereas cash = power & independence.

Not German, but I simply don't want to leave my trail of what I am spending and where.

by wila 9y ago

Not German, but I simply don't want to leave my trail of what I am spending and where.

eatbitseveryday 9y ago

And what of purchases made on websites?

Froyoh 9y ago
Opt for money order, cheques?
kuschku 9y ago
As very few Germans even have credit cards, most Germans pay online (if they don’t use PayPal) via SEPA wire transfer or SEPA ELV. And even PayPal and Amazon support using SEPA ELV to pay for stuff.

theEXTORTCIST 9y ago

Was waiting for this comment. I often ask myself, "Do I want any entity to have a copy of the exact dates and amounts of my entire daily consumer activity?". Whether anonymized or not there is a tremendous amount of knowledge that can be gleaned from non-itemized debit card ledgers.

317070 9y ago

I also think/thought like that. But if banks wanted, they could actually track the serial codes on the bills around. And since often cash is used in only 1 hop (so ATM -> you -> shop -> bank) they could know pretty well where you spent your money. A quick reference: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9948081 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9948081 E.g. about China: "According to schedule, by late 2015, the serial number of every Rmb100 note withdrawn from banks by members of the public can be traced."

jhasse 9y ago
> But if banks wanted, they could actually track the serial codes on the bills around. And since often cash is used in only 1 hop (so ATM -> you -> shop -> bank) they could know pretty well where you spent your money. That doesn't include how much you spend exactly. And it only works most of the time (what if my money gets used as change for another customer?).

nostromo123 9y ago

Same here. Also, been a couple of times in the situation where either the shop's card terminal was malfunctioning, or the bank had some issues, and the card payment was impossible. Without cash you'd be helpless in such a situation, whereas cash = power & independence.