Royal Canadian Mint?s ?MintChip? Looks To Officially Digitize Cash

Moving everyday transactions into the digital realm seems an inevitability, but as yet there have been no breakout successes. Sure, there are fringe efforts like Square (which relies on existing card and bank infrastructure) and Google Wallet (which is a bit early to the NFC party), but there's nothing that the average consumer would see and think "yes, that is as simple as handing the merchant a five-dollar bill." The Royal Canadian Mint is hoping to create such a system: a multi-platform, simple, and secure alternative to cash. Others around the net have likened it to Bitcoin, but that's really an inapt comparison. MintChip isn't a virtual currency, it's a virtual wallet, something which has been tried before. But, naturally enough, they hope to succeed where others have failed. But are they writing a check they can't cash?

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