Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2018/05/11/australia-says-cash-about-to-b.html
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The 500 Euro note has been phased out of production after it became popular with people wanting to move huge values in form of bills; people like, um… criminals?
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I feel like we’ve been warned about this someplace before…
Revelation 13:16-17 ESV
Also it causes all, both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave, to be marked on the right hand or the forehead, so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark, that is, the name of the beast or the number of its name
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Of course in the US, any cash transaction of $10k or more means that you have to submit an IRS from 8300…
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Shell companies were invented just to get around things like this, and they work. Banks will never turn down money, from whatever source. This will do nothing to prevent money laundering.
There was a documentary here a few years ago in which the investigator specifically told the bank official he had illegal money to deposit. The banker didn’t care.
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well - Australia is an English prison colony… works for them - should totally work for USA!
forget that Revolutionary War! - lets get back to the basics
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In that case, why isn’t it anything above $666?
@simonize That’s my least favorite part of ransom payments.
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Yeah, I think this is the kicker. Outlawing large cash payments will be one thing, but they are kind of useless unless digital (i.e. bank) payments are much more stringently regulated.
It will be interesting to see what the work arounds that develop are. Also, that some crazy expensive smokes.
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Fixed that for you
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So I guess you gotta bring your bitcoin wallet when you buy illegal tobacco.
It always amuses me how the government doesn’t realize the futility of trying to regulate human behavior. It really is supposed to flow the other way [in a democracy], where society regulates the behavior of its government.
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also people like non-conformists. or day laborers who don’t have regular employment. or poor people who don’t have a bank account.
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or simply people who dont want a bank account or anything to do with them
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A 500 euro note is worth over $600. I’m not sure how many day-labourers get given that kind of scratch. 
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oh, they’re the BEST!
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Sweden has pretty much banned cash and gone to 1% of cash transactions. (I have to wonder how this affects buskers)
Planet Money did a story on $100 bills, because they are so popular for laundering, apparently 80% of the cash supply is in 100 dollar bills and yet you rarely see them.
India went even further " imposed an overnight ban on Rs500 and Rs1,000 banknotes — taking 86 per cent of the country’s cash out of circulation in a dramatic attempt to purge “black money” from the economy." black money
All of this is to reduce money laundering and yet according to Treasure Islands there is something like $29 trillion stashed away in various havens, by rich individuals, governments, and gangsters. I doubt much of it is poor people.
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Obligatory Gibson quote: ‘The US $100 bill is the international currency of bad shit.’
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I wonder if their methodology for measuring that works like “well here’s one $100 dollar bill, and a hundred $1 dollar bills, so yeah, 50% of the cash is in $100 dollar bills!”
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"debit cards would be great for surveillance."
But for catching fraud, not so much.
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So what I’ve learned is that if I ever get around to visiting Australia, I need to pack a few cartons of cigarettes for “personal use”.
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