Technology, money and savings.

Article by Theodore Krintas

It is true that we live in the era of technological revolution. Tablets, smartphones, apps and augmented reality are already part of our daily lives. It has happened smoothly and is considered “normal” and it is also related with millennials generation for whose is their lives indeed.
 
As time passes and we focus on our Facebook timeline, several other technologies evolve which are going to change the way this world operates. It is not the technology itself, it is mainly a completely different mindset that becomes a societal standard. Driverless cars, human-less banks and paperless money are here and will continue to change our behavior.
 
We know and most importantly understand the value of Uber service as we also know and love Airbnb. But what about a new service like Turo.com, where you can rent your car or rent a car following the same principles as with Airbnb? What about peer to peer (P2P) microlending which can tap almost 60% of bank lending?
 

The world changes its focus from possessing to using.

I am sure you understand my point. The world changes its focus from possessing to using. For us economists it is the same utility function in both cases. Again for us, the utility per EURO unit is higher when you posses something only while you use it. It requires less capital, it is easier to decide and it is more productive. On top of that, if you posses something you don’t use, you may make money out of it!
 
There is also another point I want to stress. Blockchain technology. Yes, those crypto or digital currencies which, like almost any conventional national currency, are based on basic rules of scarcity, supply and demand. The more I read about them, the more I believe they are the future. In reality I believe they are the present. Conventional money becomes paper-less through credit cards and mobile apps. Once nationality (already here in the case of Europe) becomes irrelevant, you have the basics for a world crypto curency, which then can affect savings also.
 
I promise to discuss the savings part of the equation more in one of my future posts, but for now I want to leave you with some initial thoughts. What if savings are a state privilege only? What if we consume only what we need on a daily basis and the rest of the money we make are, by law, transferred in a central state depository for our common present and future? What difference would bring to human behavior banning money hoarding? If we can use everything we need at the time we need it, if there is also a safety net for those of us not able to do so, wouldn’t that increase prosperity in our world? Wouldn’t prosperity enhance democracy all over the world? Wouldn’t true democracy increase happiness and ban wars and fights? Food for thought…