Up until November of 2016, Cash was indeed the King in Indian trade circuit. Whether it was buying a bunch of “dhaniya” at a cart around the corner or a car at a swanky showroom, wads of cash came forth as preferred instrument. Rightfully so, especially since the Card infrastructure was in a nascent state, issuance of Cards (both Credit and Debit Cards) were considered a luxury exclusively available to wealthy customers and the merchants at the Point-of-Sale had to spend a lot to acquire the POS terminals and give a sizeable share of the transaction as charges to the Acquiring Banks and Networks.
Something happened on November 8th, 2016 that changed the face of commerce forever in India. That day, the Prime Minister of India demonetized all the ₹500 and ₹1000 currency notes that were in circulation. A nation that was so habituated with currency notes for every small and large transaction suddenly felt handicapped. For months together, there were long queues in front of Banks and ATMs to surrender old currency notes and withdraw new notes. Since the currency was not being disbursed at the rate at which trade happened, many things happened
Kids were compelled to break their piggy banks to bring into circulation the notes and coins they had saved for perpetuity. Cash tucked away in empty pickle jars and Dal dabbas by housewives brought out a curry trail when they were put back in circulation. Senior citizens who had spare currency notes deposited them into banks so as to bring them into circulation. Months of brouhaha and a field day for media and politicians alike.
But most importantly, the ordeal that ensued for months paved way for a New India – an India where you didn’t have to use Cash, you didn’t even have to use Credit Cards or Debit Cards. You just used your smartphone to pay ₹5 for a toffee, pay ₹50 for a cup of coffee at a café and pay ₹50,000 to buy a piece of jewelry or that fancy electronic gadget you always wanted.
These ordeals are what we will address in a series of articles so stay with us.
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