Card payment systems are sometimes accused of taking from the poor and giving to the rich. The argument is as follows: High card fees are leading to higher retail prices for both, card users and cash users. However, high income card holders are receiving rewards when purchasing by card. The...

The current discussion about the future of the financial system draws heavily on a set of theories known as the ‘New Monetary Economics’. The New Monetary Economics predicts that deregulation and financial innovation will lead to a moneyless world. This paper uses a market microstructure...

Das Problem eines möglichen Austritts aus einem Bundesstaat oder Staatenbund ist nicht neu. In der gegenwärtigen Krise steht dabei insbesondere der Aspekt „Austritt aus einer Währungsunion“ im Vordergrund. Vor noch nicht allzu langer Zeit war die Austrittsproblematik in Kanada von...

The period from the 1950s to the late 1970s saw an almost uniform decline of cash-to-GDP ratios in industrial countries. A closer look at the German payment system suggests that the factor causing such a change has been the shift towards cashless wage payments. In this period, in Germany, the...