Forthepast3,000years,whenpcoplethoughtofmoneytheythoughtofcash.Frombuyingfoodtosettlingbartabs,day-to-daydealingsinvolvedcreasedpaperorclinkingbitsofmetal. Overthepastdecade，however，digitalpaymentshavetakenoff--tappingyourplasticonaterminalorswipingasmartphonehasbecomenormal.Nowthisrevolutionisabouttoturneashintoanendangeredspecicsinsomerichcconomics.Thatwillmakethecconomymoreefieicnt--butitalsoposcsnewproblemsthatcouldholdthetransitionhostage. Countriesareeliminatingceashatvaryingspeeds.Butthedirectionoftravelisclear,andinsomecasesthejoumeyisnearlycomplete.InSwedenthenumberofretailcashtransactionsperpersonhasfallenby80%inthepasttenyears.Cashaccountsforjust6%ofpurchasesbyvalueinNorway.BritainisprobablyfourorsixyearsbehindtheNordiccountries.Americaisperhapsadeeadebehind.Outsidetherichworld,cashisstillking.Buteventhereitsdominanceisbeingcroded.InChinadigitalpaymentsrosefrom4%ofallpaymentsin2012to34%in2017. Cashisdyingoutbeauseoftwoforees.Oneisdemand-youngerconsumerswantpaymentsystemsthatplugscamlesslyintotheirdigitallives.Butequallyimportantisthatsupplirssuchasbanksandtechfirms(indevelopedmarkets)andtelccomscompanics(inemergingoncs)aredevelopingfast,easy-to-usepaymenttechnologicsfromwhichtheycanpulldataandpocketfees. Thereisahighcosttorunningtheinfrastructurebehindthecasheconomy--ATMs，vanscarryingnotes,tellerswhoaceptcoins.Mostfinancialfirmsarekeentoabandonit,ordeterold-fashionedcustomerswithheflyfees. Inthemain，theprospectofacashlesseconomyisexcellentnews.Cashisinefficient.Inrichcountries,minting，sorting，storinganddistributingitiscstimatedtocostabout0.5%ofGDP.Butthatdoesnotbegintocapturethegains.Whenpaymentsdematerialize,peopleandshopsarelessvulnerabletotheft.Govermmentscankeepclosertabsonfraudortaxevasion. Digitalisationvastlyexpandstheplaygroundofsmallbusinessesandsoletradersbyenablingthemtosellbeyondtheirborders.Italsocreatesacredithistory,helpingconsumersborrow. Yetsetagainstthesebeneftsareabundleofworries.Eleotronicpaymentsystemsmaybevulnerabletotechnicalfailurespowerblackoutsandcyber-atacks-thisweckCapitalOne，anAmericanbank,becamethelatestfimtobehacked.Inacashlesseconomythepoor,theelderlyandcountryfolkmaybeleftbehind.Anderadicatingcash,ananonymouspaymentmethod,foradigitalsystemcouldletgovemmentssnooponpeople'sshoppinghabitsandprivatetitansexploittheirpersonaldata. Theseproblemshavethreeremedies.First,govermmentsneedtoensurethatcentralbanks'monopolyovercoinsandnotesisnotreplacedbyprivatemonopoliesoverdigitalmoney.Ratherthanlttingafewcredil-cardfirmshaveastrangleholdontheeleetronicpipesfordigitalpayments,asAmericamayyetallow;govemmentsmustensurethepaymentsplumbingisopentoarangeofdigitalfirmswhichcanbuildservicesontopofit.Theyshouldurgebankstooffercheap,instant，bank-to-bankdigitaltransfersbetweendepositaccounts，asinSwedenandtheNetherlands.Competitionshouldkeeppriccslowsothatthepoorcanaffordmostservices,anditshouldalsomeanthatifonefirmstumblesotherscanstepin,.makingthesystemresilient.Sccond,govemmentsshouldmaintainbanks'obligationtokeepcustomcrinformationprivate,sothattheplumbingremainsanonymous.Digitalfirmsthatusethisplumbingtoofferservicesshouldbefreetomonetisetransactiondata,through,forexample,advertising，solongastheirbusinessmodelismadeexplicittouscrs.Somecustomerswillfavourfreeservicesthattracktheirpurchases;otherswillwanttopaytobeleftalonc. Last,thephasc-outofcashshouldbegradual.Foraperiodoftenyears,"banksshouldbeobligedtoacceptanddistributecashinpopulatedareas.Thiswillbuygovermmentstimetohelpthepooropenbankaccounts,educatetheelderlyandbeefupinternetaccessinruralareas.Therushtowardsdigitalmoneyistheresultofspontaneousdemandandinnovation.Topocketalltherewards,govemmentsneedtoprepareforthedaywhenerumpledbanknoleschangehandsforthelasttime. AccordingtoParagraph2,whichofthefllowingstatermentsisFALSE?()
A.America has been left behind perthaps a decade comparing to Britain regarding the number of retail cash transaction. B.The speeds of eliminating cash in several countries are different. C.The dominance of cash is being croded even in the non-rich areas. D.There is a rise of numbers of digital payments in China form 2012 to 2017正确答案A
