Never surrender!: why Barefoot Investor won’t give up on cash

Barefoot’s week-long cash-only experiment turned into a battle with fast-food workers, bureaucrats, and the Royal Australian Mint - revealing just how fragile our financial freedoms really are.

Scott Pape believes it is worth the cost to taxpayers to keep cash circulating.

The teenager stood in front of me, holding my burrito, shaking her head.

“We don’t accept cash – use your card”, she instructed, in the same tone that I use when my parents ask whether it’s ‘safe’ to download the latest update on their phone.

“But I don’t have a card!” I pleaded with the fast-food worker.

She scanned my face, looking for clues, for a good 10 seconds.

I wanted to tell her that I was doing an experiment of using only cash for a week, and that I was in fact a successful financial expert. And also that I was really hungry. But I didn’t do any of those things. I just stood there like an idiot.

“Can you call someone?” she said, her expression changing from annoyance to pity.

“I don’t have a phone on me. And even if I did … my wife wouldn’t help”, I whined.

No burrito for Barefoot!

Look, this week has been a pain in the rump.

As in literally: I’ve had a huge bulge in my pockets from lugging like a kilo of coins.

“Why are you jingling like Captain Feathersword, Daddy?” asked my four-year-old one evening.

Argh, me harties!

Yet, as I went to bed that night, all that jingling got me thinking:

How much does it cost to create our cumbersome coins?

So the next morning I called up the Royal Australian Mint.

And that’s where things got really … minty.

After days of getting ghosted multiple times, I finally got on to an executive from the Mint.

“Your request is currently with the privacy department … because it’s commercial in confidence”, she said patronisingly.

“Commercial in confidence? Who the hell are you competing with, the Vietnamese dong?!” I joked.

She did not laugh.

The Royal Australian Mint is basically the Blockbuster Video of the Australian Government, says Scott Pape.

Look, I get why they don’t want people asking pesky questions about the cost of coins. After all, the Mint is basically the Blockbuster Video of the Australian Government. According to the Reserve Bank, in the 12 years to 2022, cash transactions plummeted from over 60% to just 13% (and that’s the dude in the singlet in front of you at the Aldi checkout).

The result is that not only is the Mint producing way fewer notes and coins, it’s flowed on to their bag boys, Armaguard, who are broke. (The company is now acting like a homeless dude begging for money outside of Woolies. Got some change, bro?)

“You are not the first journalist to ring up and ask for this information. They call up every week. We don’t give it out”, said the Mint executive dismissively.

So that was that.

Except this Blockbuster bureaucrat didn’t know she was up against Capt’n Feathersword!

So I immediately called up the Minister responsible for the Mint, Andrew Leigh.

“How much does it cost to create our coins?” I asked the Minister’s office.

“If the Mint won’t tell you, we can’t tell you. What the Mint says is gospel”, the Government spinner said dismissively.

I took a deep breath and said calmly:

“No, your Minister is God and he writes the gospel. And I think taxpayers have a right to know how much our coins are costing us.”

She took a deep breath and snapped:

“What was your name again? Is this for a podcast? How many followers do you have?”

“I’m the Barefoot Investor. Look me up.”

The next day I got a very friendly, and apologetic, text from her boss (MP Andrew Leigh):

“Scott, I’m sorry the Mint wasn’t able to get you the figures you were after. As you’d appreciate, the Mint makes the call themselves on issues like disclosing costs.”

Actually, Minister, I don’t ‘appreciate’ highly paid bureaucrats deciding they’re too important to answer to the people who pay their salaries. This ain’t North Korea. Yet.

So, in the words of that old slapper Will Smith, I think it’s high time I get ‘jiggy with it’ and tell you what I really think:

Not only am I a huge fan of cash, I actually believe it is worth the cost to taxpayers to keep it circulating.

Here’s why:

First, because it’s part of our national identity, and our security.

Case in point: Sweden has gone all in on having a cashless society – so much so that they’ve got the lowest amount of physical cash floating around of any countries in the world. But guess what, they’re now having second thoughts.

In November 2024, the Swedish Ministry of Defence sent every household a cheery little brochure entitled ‘If Crisis or War Comes’, advising citizens to withdraw and use cash regularly, keeping at least a week’s worth on hand in various denominations – because if cybercriminals or hostile nations decide to pull the plug on digital payments, tapping your card won’t buy you any Swedish meatballs.

In other words, if the Vikings are worried about a digital apocalypse, maybe it’s time to stash a few pineapples under the mattress.

Second, because it’s an awesome visual aid for teaching kids the value of a buck.

And, finally, because the people who really run Canberra – the Australian Taxation Office – despise cash, since it can’t be tracked. They want every payment to be electronic so they can suck up all that data and feed it through their AI supercomputers to track our every financial move.

Besides, this week’s bureaucratic bulldust is exactly why we should never surrender cash.

Tread your own path!

Should I Marry a Kind Loser?

Scott,

I have my own company that’s worth a bit of money, and I own my own home and car. I earn $250,000 a year. However, I’ve been dating a guy for about two years who doesn’t have anything. He earns the minimum wage, can’t save, and is consistently struggling. Everyone I know keeps telling me to leave him. Yet he is the kindest soul and my best friend – he’s had a really rough upbringing and just keeps hitting bad luck. Still, I’m scared he is going to live off my back the rest of my life. I’m 30 now, and I want to get married. But should money be the deciding factor in this relationship?

Mary

Barefoot’s “not a relationship coach” but he knows where Mary’s relationship is heading.

Hi Mary

Let me be clear: I’m a finance guy, not a relationship coach.

To me, dating is like shopping at Ikea: everything looks cute and stylish under those soft Scandinavian lights. You stroll through the aisles, picturing how perfect it’ll be in your home.

Marriage is like dragging the flatpack home, realising the instructions make no sense, and discovering – halfway through assembly – that you’re missing three screws and the whole thing is lopsided.

Right now, your guy is that wobbly, half-built Billy bookcase – no savings, no financial stability, and no clear plan. Maybe he can pull himself together. Yet you’re not his allen key, Mary.

If he truly loves you, he’ll prove it. Hand him The Barefoot Investor and give him three months to get a better job, start saving, and show he’s serious about building a future with you.

What if he can’t?

Well, you know what to do with wonky furniture that won’t stand up on its own – dump it on the nature strip and move on.

How Low Can My Shares Go?

Hi Scott,

I stupidly put $9000 into shares before Trump, when prices were high, but now they’ve gone backwards! Yikes! I haven’t sold them (yet), but I’m just wondering how low can they go? Obviously these tariffs and trade wars are biting, but will it end? And how can we tell when the lowest point is reached? And will it ever recover?

Helen

Barefoot says if you are investing in the stockmarket you should be prepared for your shares to (temporarily) be cut in half.

Hi Helen,

How low can your shares go?

Well, my back-of-the-envelope calculations say that you’re down about … $700.

Boo. Bloody. Hoo. Helen.

Seriously, if you’ve going to invest, you should be prepared for your shares to (temporarily) be cut in half.

It’s happened before!

Yet here’s the key: the market has always bounced back, and then gone higher.

And that is why we invest: it’s because the share market really is the greatest wealth-building tool in history … but only if you allow your money to keep compounding.

So, here’s your three-step survival guide:

First, only invest in index funds with money you don’t need for at least five years.

Second, have enough Mojo – cash in a savings account – so you can sleep at night and not panic sell.

Finally, be like me – only check your shares once or twice a year. You’ll be much happier and wealthier for it.

DISCLAIMER: Information and opinions provided in this column are general in nature and have been prepared for educational purposes only. Always seek personal financial advice tailored to your specific needs before making financial and investment decisions.