According to the US Federal Reserve and Treasury, paper currency is made from 75 per cent cotton and 25 per cent linen. The surface of the bills is fibrous, allowing germs to adhere more easily and survive longer than they can on smooth objects.
Studies showed microbes can persist on surfaces for as long as 9 days and it is obvious that cleaning the paper bill is more difficult than cleaning a plastic or glass surface. Theoretically, it is possible that the virus might survive on the dollar’s cotton and linen weave, paving the way for a COVID-19 cash transmission from a person to another.
Some stores in the US like the burger chain “Dick’s Drive-in” are placing signs asking customers to pay with credit or debit cards rather than cash as a precaution. The WHO [World Health Organisation – Ed.] has not issued any warnings or statements about the use of cash but – of course – it is a must to wash hands after handling money, especially when eating or touching food.
Is there a risk for using cash? The US Treasury was waiting for advice from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In case of any negative announcement, firms such as Visa Inc & Mastercard Inc would benefit the most and digital payments will take over almost everything.
This is very good to fight corruption, but going cashless is worrisome for some people. Much of the population is either un- or underbanked and it is not easy to implement inclusive cashless commerce.
In China, the people’s Bank of China began using ultraviolet light and high-temperature ovens to disinfect cash coming in and replaced old notes with newly minted bills. Assuming most banks have their own protocol for handling bills and packaging the contaminated ones aside, the fear of the virus spread through cash is still inexorable.
Reina Sankari
Curaçao
