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There's something I don't understand: the current system works great. Cash as well as credit cards. So why change that? If they want money to work in essentiall

by surume 4y ago

There's something I don't understand: the current system works great. Cash as well as credit cards. So why change that? If they want money to work in essentially the same way, why mutate a system that is extremely resilient and has been battle tested historically? I can only see a nefarious goal here from there side. And no, I don't believe that their privacy policies will hold any water when the government or police come knocking. Can someone convince me otherwise?

agosta 4y ago
From a merchant's perspective, Blockchain backed money can reduce the cost of moving money. Typical credit card and ach debits/credits take 3 to 5 business days to settle and cost the merchant over 2% to 3% of every sale (higher for smaller businesses). That means we consumers pay Visa and the other big processors 2% to 3% of nearly everything we by online and in store because merchants - of course - pass those fees onto us. If this CBDC can process payments within a few seconds or minutes (some Blockchains are able to) that's also a huge win for merchants as that means they actually have the funds they need to fulfill orders rather than relying on credit (which also costs $) and having to wait days for all customer's funds to be deposited. Rapid settling times help cut down on fraud - which itself is very costly to businesses (the cost of which is carried by the consumer). So by switching to a quickly settling CBDC, businesses can save time and money - savings that can be passed to consumers. Now, whether they ever do that is another question.
- phendrenad2 4y ago
  Do you think credit card companies are going to willingly evaporate overnight when CBDCs roll out? People will still pay for everything with payment processors and use credit cards.
  - agosta 4y ago
    As a merchant myself, I would get rid of my credit card processor As Soon As Possible if a viable, inexpensive alternative existed. Obviously they'll fight tooth and nail to survive.
rglover 4y ago
> There's something I don't understand: the current system works great. Cash as well as credit cards. So why change that? Control. If you're of the mindset that there is an upper-class and a lower-class, you're incentivized to create a form of money that makes both permanent. This prevents competition, generational wealth transfer, and guarantees infinite, cheap obedient labor. The movie Elysium is a great caricature of where this will lead.

by surume 4y ago

agosta 4y ago

From a merchant's perspective, Blockchain backed money can reduce the cost of moving money. Typical credit card and ach debits/credits take 3 to 5 business days to settle and cost the merchant over 2% to 3% of every sale (higher for smaller businesses). That means we consumers pay Visa and the other big processors 2% to 3% of nearly everything we by online and in store because merchants - of course - pass those fees onto us. If this CBDC can process payments within a few seconds or minutes (some Blockchains are able to) that's also a huge win for merchants as that means they actually have the funds they need to fulfill orders rather than relying on credit (which also costs $) and having to wait days for all customer's funds to be deposited. Rapid settling times help cut down on fraud - which itself is very costly to businesses (the cost of which is carried by the consumer). So by switching to a quickly settling CBDC, businesses can save time and money - savings that can be passed to consumers. Now, whether they ever do that is another question.

phendrenad2 4y ago
Do you think credit card companies are going to willingly evaporate overnight when CBDCs roll out? People will still pay for everything with payment processors and use credit cards.
- agosta 4y ago
  As a merchant myself, I would get rid of my credit card processor As Soon As Possible if a viable, inexpensive alternative existed. Obviously they'll fight tooth and nail to survive.

rglover 4y ago

> There's something I don't understand: the current system works great. Cash as well as credit cards. So why change that? Control. If you're of the mindset that there is an upper-class and a lower-class, you're incentivized to create a form of money that makes both permanent. This prevents competition, generational wealth transfer, and guarantees infinite, cheap obedient labor. The movie Elysium is a great caricature of where this will lead.