Money is one fantastic and useful application of blockchain technology, and it has the potential to change our lives. In recent years, there has been a push towards cashless in societies, says Amber Baldet, who points out that several Scandanadvian countries are nearly entirely cashless already. Thirty years ago it might have been considered illegal not to accept cash as tender, but now it’s a possibility for any business. “Now, you can definitely go to a bistro, and they will say ‘We’re cashless’ or your farmers market where you buy asparagus for five bucks, they’d rather you use Square. And what does that mean? It means that every financial transaction, every time you buy something, you are actually asking a third-party service, ‘Is it okay that I do this?’ And you don’t really have insight into how many different providers are part of that yes or no decision that happens so quickly.”

There are plenty of reasons why we expect financial privacy, from health insurance payouts to political donations, says Baldet. “We can’t really look at ‘If you’re not doing anything wrong, then you don’t need privacy.’ It really is privacy from whom in what context. And that context is changing all the time. So what might be fine for you today might not necessarily be fine for you tomorrow, and might definitely not be fine for a vulnerable population that struggles to be financially included day-to-day anyway.”

Listen to the full conversation here.

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