时间:2024-10-19 05:02:01
STOCKHOLM — Parishioners text tithes to their churches. Homeless street vendors carry mobile credit-card readers. Even the Abba Museum, despite being a shrine to the 1970s pop group that wrote “Money, Money, Money,” considers cash so last-century that it does not accept bills and coins.斯德哥尔摩——教区信众利用短信向教会交纳什一税。无家可归的街头小贩随身携带移动信用卡刷卡机。
作为70年代风行人组、《钱,钱,钱》(Money, Money, Money)的作者阿巴乐队(Abba)的圣祠,阿巴博物馆(Abba Museum)也指出现金“过时”而不拒绝接受纸币和硬币。Few places are tilting toward a cashless future as quickly as Sweden, which has become hooked on the convenience of paying by app and plastic.很少有地方像瑞典一样,很快地朝着无现金的未来迈向。
瑞典早已酷爱了移动应用于和卡片缴纳的便捷。This tech-forward country, home to the music streaming service Spotify and the maker of the Candy Crush mobile games, has been lured by the innovations that make digital payments easier. It is also a practical matter, as many of the countrys banks no longer accept or dispense cash.作为音乐串流服务Spotify和移动游戏糖果消灭传奇(Candy Crush)的诞生地,这个崇尚技术变革的国家十分醉心于便利数码缴纳的创意。
这也是一个现实的问题,因为许多瑞典的银行仍然拒绝接受或发给现金。At the Abba Museum, “we dont want to be behind the times by taking cash while cash is dying out,” said Bjorn Ulvaeus, a former Abba member who has leveraged the bands legacy into a sprawling business empire, including the museum.前阿巴乐队成员比约恩·乌尔维乌斯(Bjorn Ulvaeus)在阿巴博物馆说道:“我们可想领先于时代,现金早已慢出局了还要缴。”他利用乐队留给的传奇创建了一个可观的商业帝国,其中还包括这座博物馆。
Not everyone is cheering. Swedens embrace of electronic payments has alarmed consumer organizations and critics who warn of a rising threat to privacy and increased vulnerability to sophisticated Internet crimes. Last year, the number of electronic fraud cases surged to 140,000, more than double the amount a decade ago, according to Swedens Ministry of Justice.不是每个人都在掌声。电子支付在瑞典的普及早已令其消费者的组织和抨击人士心生警觉。他们警告侵害隐私的威胁不会下降,也不会令其高水平的网络犯罪更为嚣张。
根据瑞典司法部,去年电子欺诈案件数量剧增至14万,比起十年前减少了一倍。Older adults and refugees in Sweden who use cash may be marginalized, critics say. And young people who use apps to pay for everything or take out loans via their mobile phones risk falling into debt.抨击人士说道,在瑞典用于现金的老年人和难民可能会被边缘化。
而用于移动应用于以缴纳一切费用或通过手机借贷的年轻人,可能会面对陷于债务的风险。“It might be trendy,” said Bjorn Eriksson, a former director of the Swedish police force and former president of Interpol. “But there are all sorts of risks when a society starts to go cashless.”“这有可能是很时髦,”前瑞典警察局局长和前国际刑警主席比约恩·埃里克松(Bjorn Eriksson)说道。
“但当社会不必现金时,也不会面对种种风险。”But advocates like Ulvaeus cite personal safety as a reason that countries should go cash-free. He switched to using only card and electronic payments after his sons Stockholm apartment was burglarized twice several years ago.乌尔维乌斯这样的无现金倡导者则以人身安全为由,希望国家应当仍然用现金。
自从他儿子在斯德哥尔摩的公寓数年前两次被盗后,乌尔维乌斯就要用卡或电子缴付了。“There was such a feeling of insecurity,” said Ulvaeus, who carries no cash at all. “It made me think: What would happen if this was a cashless society, and the robbers couldnt sell what they stole?”“当时就有种不安全性的感觉。”现在早已几乎不装载现金的乌尔维乌斯说道。
“这让我想起:如果这是一个无现金社会,而劫匪无法销赃,那不会怎么样?”Bills and coins now represent just 2 percent of Swedens economy, compared with 7.7 percent in the United States and 10 percent in the euro area. This year, only a fifth of all consumer payments in Sweden have been made in cash, compared with an average of 75 percent in the rest of the world, according to Euromonitor International.纸币和硬币现在只占到了瑞典经济的2%,而在美国有7.7%,欧元区有10%。根据欧睿信息咨询公司(Euromonitor International),今年瑞典所有的消费缴付只有五分之一用于现金,反观在世界其他地区平均值有75%以现金缴付。Cards are still king in Sweden — with nearly 2.4 billion credit and debit transactions in 2013, compared with 213 million 15 years earlier. But even plastic is facing competition, as a rising number of Swedes use apps for everyday commerce.卡在瑞典依然是主要交易工具——在2013年有将近24亿信用卡和储蓄卡交易,15年前只有2.13亿。不过,卡也面对竞争,因为更加多瑞典人在日常交易中用于移动应用于。
At more than half of the branches of the countrys biggest banks, including SEB, Swedbank, Nordea Bank and others, no cash is kept on hand, nor are cash deposits accepted. They say they are saving a significant amount on security by removing the incentive for bank robberies.瑞典几大银行,还包括瑞典北欧斯安银行(SEB)、瑞典银行(Swedbank)、北欧联合银行(Nordea Bank)等,有半数以上的支行不遗现金,也不拒绝接受现金存款。他们说道这明显节省了保安成本,因为劫匪偷窃银行的诱因没了。Last year, Swedish bank vaults held around 3.6 billion kronor in notes and coins, down from 8.7 billion in 2010, according to the Bank for International Settlements. Cash machines, which are controlled by a Swedish bank consortium, are being dismantled by the hundreds, especially in rural areas.根据国际清算银行(Bank for International Settlements),去年瑞典银行金库约存着36亿瑞典克朗的纸币和硬币,而2010年有87亿。
由瑞典银行财团掌控的取款机有数百台将被拆毁,特别是在是在农村地区。Eriksson, who now heads the Association of Swedish Private Security Companies, a lobbying group for firms providing security for cash transfers, accuses banks and credit card companies of trying to “price cash out of the market” to make way for cards and electronic payments, which generate fee income.现为瑞典私营保安公司协会(Association of Swedish Private Security Companies)会长的埃里克松谴责银行和信用卡公司企图“用低定价将现金吸管市场”,退位给卡和电子支付。卡和电子支付能产生费用收益。
协会是一个代表现金运输护卫公司的游说团体。“I dont think thats something they should decide on their own,” he said. “Should they really be able to use their market force to turn Sweden into a cashless society?”“我不指出这事应当它们自行决定,”他说道。“它们应当利用其市场力量,使瑞典沦为一个无现金社会吗?”The government has not sought to stem the cashless tide. If anything, it has benefited from more efficient tax collection, because electronic transactions leave a trail; in countries like Greece and Italy, where cash is still heavily used, tax evasion remains a big problem.政府没企图制止无现金潮流。
事实上由于税款搜集的效率提升,它还是个受益者,因为电子交易会留给痕迹;而在仍大量用于现金的希腊和意大利等国,偷税漏税依然是一个大问题。Leif Trogen, an official at the Swedish Bankers Association, acknowledged that banks were earning substantial fee income from the cashless revolution. But because it costs money for banks and businesses to conduct commerce in cash, reducing its use makes financial sense, Trogen said.瑞典银行家协会(Swedish Bankers Association)官员雷夫·特罗根(Leif Trogen)否认,银行从无现金化革命中能取得相当可观的费用收益。特罗根说道,但由于银行和企业用现金积极开展交易是有成本的,增加现金的用于在财务上是合理的。
Cash is certainly not dead. The Swedish central bank, the Riksbank, predicts it will decline fast but still be circulating in 20 years. Recently, the Riksbank issued newly redesigned coins and notes.现金当然还没杀。瑞典央行瑞典国家银行(Riksbank),预计现金流通量将上升得迅速,但未来20年依然不会流通。瑞典国家银行近日刚发售硬币和纸币的新设计。
But for an increasing number of consumers, cash is no longer a habit.但是,对于更加多的消费者来说,现金缴付已仍然是消费习惯。At the University of Gothenburg, students said they almost exclusively used cards and electronic payments. “No one uses cash,” said Hannah Ek, 23. “I think our generation can live without it.”在哥德堡大学(University of Gothenburg)的学生说道,他们完全要用卡和电子支付。“我们不用于现金了,”23岁的汉娜·耶克(Hannah Ek)说道。
“我实在我们这一代人可以不必现金了。”The downside, she conceded, was that it was easy to spend without thinking. “I do spend more,” Ek said. “But if I had a 500 krona bill, Id think twice about spending it all.” (Five hundred kronor is about $58.)她否认缺点是很更容易不假思索就花钱了。“我花上的更加多了,”耶克说道。
“但是,如果我有一张500克朗纸币,我花钱不会三思而后。”(五百克朗约合58美元。
)The shift has rippled through even the most unlikely corners of the Swedish economy.连瑞典经济中最意想不到的角落,都在被这种改变影响着。Stefan Wikberg, 65, was homeless for four years after losing his job as an IT technician. He has a place to live now and sells magazines for Situation Stockholm, a charitable organization, and began using a mobile card reader to take payments, after noticing that almost no one carried cash.65岁的斯特凡·维克贝格(Stefan Wikberg)作为IT技术人员失业后曾有四年无家可归。他现在有住的地方,而且为慈善的组织“斯德哥尔摩情势”(Situation Stockholm)出售杂志。
他找到完全没有人装载现金后,就开始利用移动刷卡机收款。“Now people cant get away,” said Wikberg, who carries a sign saying he accepts Visa, MasterCard and American Express. “When they say, `I dont have change, I tell them they can pay with card or even by SMS,” he said, referring to text messages. His sales have grown by 30 percent since he adopted the card reader two years ago.维克贝格说道:“现在人们没有借口了。”他带着一个牌子,上面写出着他拒绝接受Visa、万事达卡(MasterCard)和美国运通(American Express)。“当他们说道,‘我没零钱,’我告诉他他们,他们可以用卡甚至用短信缴纳。
”自两年前用于刷卡机收款后,他的销售快速增长了30%。Despite the convenience, even some who stand to gain from a cashless society see drawbacks.虽然便利,但即使一些反对无现金社会的人也看到了弊端。“Sweden has always been at the forefront of technology, so its easy to embrace this,” said Jacob de Geer, a founder of iZettle, which makes a mobile-powered card reader.IZettle的创始人之一雅各布·德吉尔(Jacob de Geer)说道:“瑞典仍然回头在技术的最前沿,所以很容易接受电子支付,”iZettle研发用移动设备供电的刷卡器。
“But Big Brother can watch exactly what youre doing if you purchase things only electronically,” he said.他说道:“但如果你出售东西只用电子缴付,‘老大哥’将掌控你的一举一动。”But for Ulvaeus, the music magnate, such concerns are overblown.但对于音乐巨子乌尔维乌斯来说,这种忧虑被高估了。“Everything speaks in favor of a cashless society,” he said as he strolled past the Abba Museum to retrieve his car. “Its a utopian thought, but were very close to it.”“一切都反对无现金社会,”他在漫步穿越阿巴博物馆送车的路上说道。
“这是一个乌托邦式的点子,但我们早已十分相似。”He paused at a hot-dog stand for a snack. But when he was ready to pay, the card reader was broken.他停车在一个热狗摊前卖小吃。
但是当他打算借钱时,刷卡机怕了。“Sorry,” the vendor said. “Youll have to use cash.”“对不起,”小贩说道。
“你得付现金。
本文来源:BOB博鱼-www.hxjgz.net
Copyright © 2007-2024 www.hxjgz.net. BOB博鱼科技 版权所有备案号:ICP备85501276号-8