Public Discourse on Cash

In a recent paper – Public Discourse on Retail Payments and the Case of CBDC (SAFE Working Paper No. 474, April 2026) – Ulrich Bindseil ¹, former Director General of Market Infrastructure and Payments at the European Central Bank, analyses how stakeholders in the retail payments industry shape public debates and policymaking. His focus is primarily on digital payments, particularly CBDCs, which he argues have triggered unprecedented public debate. Notably, while central banks’ mandate to issue cash is acknowledged, the broader discussion on the role of cash in retail payments is largely omitted.

Bindseil’s analysis reveals a heat map of stakeholder positions on key narratives. For example, the claim that CBDCs are dangerous (for financial stability, privacy, or liberty) is supported by the payments industry (banks, card schemes, fintechs, and the crypto community) but rejected by merchants, consumers, left-leaning idealists, and central banks.