BitCoin was highly popular for many reasons, not least of which was its supposed promise to replace cash. The financial industry has long been inequitable, so people have been looking for loopholes, hoping to gain some stability in an increasingly turbulent world. So many people have been hoping to be cashless because they argue that it would be safer for all involved. Unfortunately, there are a number of reasons why society is not ready to be completely without cash.
All electronic accounts require some backing–even cryptocurrency relies on bank accounts. Bank accounts rely on stable addresses for most people, excluding shell companies and con artists. Finally, stable addresses require stable income, and people around the world are barely keeping jobs let alone being financially stable. Banks are becoming relics of a day gone by, and demanding that everyone have stability cannot happen by willpower alone.
Using electronic accounting alone also means using electricity, and with little exception, most power is run on fossil fuel. People believe that simply because they use a phone instead of paper that they are preserving the environment, but the marketing cannot change facts. Banking apps also update with bloatware, eventually making phones unusable, and requiring a new phone purchase. Not even the tiny bit of electricity can be argued away with billions of transactions occurring at all hours of the day.
Last but not least, internet service is required to be completely cashless, and internet is still a private commodity. When there are power outages, internet service is one of the first things to go. Imagine trying to handle a crisis and having zero access to cash which could save lives. Even using a card apart from a phone requires internet, and there are still places on the planet that lack reliable internet access.
When living in a world of convenience, people forget that their convenience comes at the expense of others. There are still people in the world who are paid cash so that their unscrupulous employers can avoid taxes. The cobalt in those updating phones cost violence in the originating countries. In the end, privileged people just want to be cash-free because they think everyone lives the same way.
Chasing A Dying Empire 