In Japan, the move from cash to plastic goes slowly
A fragmented market imposes costs on retailers and consumers alike
BIC CAMERA, a Japanese electronics retailer, accepts payments in so many ways that the list nearly obscures the till: credit, debit and pre-paid cards; mobile wallets; ApplePay and Alipay; and, in some stores since April, bitcoin too.
This article appeared in the Finance & economics section of the print edition under the headline “A yen for plastic”
Finance & economics November 4th 2017
- As the global economy picks up, inflation is oddly quiescent
- Investors call the end of the government-bond bull market (again)
- Increasingly, hunting money-launderers is automated
- Jerome Powell is poised to be named chairman of the Fed
- Asian households binge on debt
- In Japan, the move from cash to plastic goes slowly
- October 30th marked the 70th birthday of the WTO’s precursor
- Catalonia and the perils of fiscal redistribution
From the November 4th 2017 edition
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