Cash is still a necessity, why do experts recommend tens of thousands of dollars in cash at home?
Cash has always been an indispensable and important component of people's lives. Although the rise of mobile payment has made people less dependent on cash, cash is still irreplaceable in some cases. Recently, some experts have suggested that at least tens of thousands of yuan in cash should be prepared at home as emergency funds, and what are the deep reasons behind this are worth exploring.
In the current era of mobile payment, people basically only need to bring a mobile phone with them when they go out. Through mobile phones, we can easily make payments, transfers, manage money, etc., and life has become more convenient than ever. The rise of mobile payment has also greatly reduced people's demand for cash, and some people even stop carrying cash altogether.
However, there are some pitfalls associated with relying too heavily on mobile payments. For example, if the mobile phone is out of battery, the network signal is poor, or the mobile phone is malfunctioning, then mobile payment cannot be used. When using mobile payments, third-party payment platforms learn about our spending data, which can compromise privacy. When all of their income is transferred to mobile payment devices, people often don't have good control over their spending, and they run out of money very quickly.
Experts recommend a detailed explanation of the top 4 reasons to prepare cash
Above we have briefly explained why experts recommend that you should have a certain amount of cash at home. Next, we will detail the four main reasons why experts make this recommendation.
1. Unable to make mobile payments due to mobile phone failures
Mobile payment has brought great convenience to our lives, but it also has an obvious flaw - relying too much on mobile phones. If your phone is malfunctioning, out of battery, or with poor internet signal, we won't be able to use mobile payments.
For example, if you accidentally break your phone while traveling, if you have cash on you, you can still spend normally, but if you don't even have cash, you will fall into a rather passive situation. In some rural areas, the network signal is poor, and there are certain obstacles to mobile payment, which can be alleviated by having cash on hand.
2. Respond to emergencies in life
It is inevitable that there will always be some unexpected situations in life, such as unemployment, illness, accidents, etc. If you have some cash in your home, you can take these situations in stride.
For example, if you are unemployed, although the government has corresponding unemployment benefits, it often takes some time to receive them, during which time you can use cash to cover your basic living expenses. In the case of a sudden illness and need to seek medical treatment, many hospitals require a deposit to be paid in advance when admitting a patient, and you can pay it in advance if you have cash in hand.
Responding to emergencies is not limited to cash, but cash is undoubtedly the most convenient and direct means to alleviate the economic pressure caused by emergencies.
3. The use of cash can protect privacy
When using mobile payment, the party payment platform will learn about our consumption data, which will leak privacy. For example, through your spending history, you can roughly infer personal information such as your income level and lifestyle.
With cash payment, there will be no electronic consumption records, and personal privacy can be well protected. Cash transactions are also more convenient for some special occasions, such as personal exchanges, New Year's greetings to elders, etc., and the use of cash will be more sincere.
Fourth, the use of cash can better control expenses
When all of their income is transferred to mobile payment devices, people often don't have good control over their spending. The money on the virtual account is invisible and intangible, and it is easy to lose the sense of reality, and the money will be spent quickly.
With cash, we can intuitively feel the amount of cash left in the wallet. When you see your wallet empty, it is natural to have a sense of crisis and thus consciously control your spending. Using cash helps us better manage our personal finances.
Cash and mobile payments go hand in hand, and the rational use of both is king
From the above, we can see that there are pros and cons to cash and mobile payments. Mobile payment has brought great convenience to our lives, but there are also some unavoidable flaws, such as over-reliance on mobile phones, privacy leakage, and difficulty in controlling expenses. Cash, on the other hand, can perfectly make up for these shortcomings of mobile payment, and has unique advantages in dealing with emergencies, protecting privacy, and controlling expenses.
Cash and mobile payments are not an either/or relationship, but should complement each other and be used in parallel. We can't just ditch cash and rely on mobile payments entirely, nor can we rest on our laurels and reject mobile payments as an emerging form of payment. Only by using cash and mobile payments wisely and leveraging the advantages of both can we get the most benefits.
Advantages and disadvantages of cash and mobile payments in different situations
On some special occasions, it may be more appropriate to use cash. For example, when you are greeting your elders for the New Year, you can use cash to be more sincere, and when you are traveling, your mobile phone may malfunction or the network signal is poor, and having cash in hand can alleviate this problem.
In everyday life, mobile payment is more convenient. For example, shopping, bill payment, online payment, etc., mobile payment can meet our large payment needs without carrying a large amount of cash.
For some important large payments, it is also better to use mobile payment because it has transaction records and can avoid disputes. Cash is suitable for the payment of some small pocket money.
How to rationalize cash and mobile payments
How to rationalize the use of cash and mobile payments?
Keep a certain amount of cash in your home as an emergency fund. The amount of cash does not need much, tens of thousands of yuan is enough, and the specific amount can be determined according to the individual's income level and living expenses.
Transfer large earnings to a mobile payment account for everyday payments. At the same time, you should also keep a certain amount of cash pocket money for yourself, which is convenient to use and can also control expenses.
For some important large payments, mobile payments are preferred, while for some small payments, cash can be used.
When you're away from home, it's essential to have some cash with you just in case. Also keep your cash safe from theft or loss.