Cash or card? A structural model of payment choices
利用大规模交易数据，研究家庭在现金和刷卡支付之间的选择，发现交易金额和手头现金量共同影响支付方式，并构建模型量化刷卡福利和不完全接受卡的成本。
We use a large granular dataset to analyze the households’ choice between cash and card payments. Empirically, both the size of the transaction and the amount of cash on hand appear as significant covariates of the payment choice. We unveil a novel interaction between these two variables: the critical size for a card purchase depends on the amount of cash on hand. We present a tractable model of payment choices, featuring non-universal acceptance of cards by merchants, and a random expenditure flow. The model generates a precautionary motive for holding a cash buffer: cards are used to avoid “running out of cash”, accounting for the interaction discussed before. We use a calibrated version of the model to quantify the benefits of card ownership, the welfare costs of imperfect card acceptance by merchants, and to identify conditions under which a cashless economy emerges.