As we struggle to go cashless post the central government’s demonetisation drive, here’s someone who’s been pushing for a cashless society since 5 years.
Björn Ulvaeus, one of the lead singers of the magnificently melodious Swedish pop group ABBA, which ruled the charts during the 70s and 80s, has been ambitiously trying to make Sweden the world’s first cashless country.
Björn may have sung the hit track Money Money Money with his band back in 1976, but the singer has been living a cashless life since 2011. The idea to have a society which did not have physical money came to the singer after his son’s apartment was repeatedly burgled.
My son was robbed a few years ago, which is what prompted the idea. No society on earth would be better placed to introduce a cashless society than Sweden…we have a small currency used only within our borders. Without cash, we would avoid the bicycle thief and the television thief, and who would buy the copper that is stolen, if they could not sell it for cash?Björn Ulvaeus in an interview
To set an example, Björn has ensured that the ABBA museum which opened in Stockholm in 2013 is run completely cashless. Entry tickets, memorabilia, souvenirs are all handed out at the museum only via cashless card transactions.
Banknotes and coins are expensive to manage, contribute to crime and are unhygienic. At ABBA The Museum we decided from the beginning not to accept cash as payment. It has been shown to work very well.Björn Ulvaeus
The 71-year-old has been crusading for a cashless Sweden and is lobbying hard for the government to make their society a financially digitized one.
I have to ask the question again because I have not got a good answer: What does a thief do with his stolen goods in a cashless society? How would the drug trade on the streets continue? I do not accept the sloppy response of “oh it will do, they will find a way”. We must think it through properly and thoroughly and put ourselves in the thief or drug dealer’s shoes.Björn Ulvaeus
Bjorn’s campaign has stirred an intensive debate in Sweden and as we’ve just witnessed in India, it’s increasingly becoming a globally relevant issue too.
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