That depends on the country. There are many countries (including my own) where any business must accept certain parts of the cash payment system (around here a

That depends on the country. There are many countries (including my own) where any business must accept certain parts of the cash payment system (around here a taxi doesn't have to accept the highest-value bank note, but the rest cannot be refused). And shops, of course. That's why newspapers bother to write articles about it.