Cashless transactions have become the norm for many businesses in recent years. While it is not uncommon for someone to carry cash on them, it is much faster and simpler to swipe your card and be on your way. Sweden, in particular, has taken this idea a step further. Projections show that it is on its way to becoming the first cashless country in the world.

Going cashless

A study conducted from Stockholm’s KTH Royal Institute of Technology shows that Sweden’s reliance on physical money is waning dramatically. Estimates show that the country currently has only 80 billion crowns (Swedish currency) in circulation. This is a major decrease from six years ago, when 106 billion marks were in circulation.

“Cash is still an important means of payment in many countries’ markets, but that no longer applies here in Sweden,” said Niklas Arvidsson, an industrial technology and management researcher at KTH.

Although 80 billion SEK (Swedish crowns) seems like a high number, Arvidsson says that the actual number is much lower than that. He estimates that only 40-60 percent of that amount is actually being used. The rest is saved by people in their homes, in bank deposit boxes, or circulating in the underground economy.