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On the Effects of the Availability of Means of Payments: The Case of Uber

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  • Fernando E. Alvarez
  • David O. Argente

Abstract

We use three quasi-natural experiments in Mexico and one in Panama to estimate the effects of having the option to pay with cash on Uber rides. The ability to pay in cash affects the demand for rides, which is reflected in large changes in the total number of trips, fares, miles, and number of users after Uber introduced cash payments, particularly in lower-income city blocks. On the other hand, the effects on prices, estimated times of arrival, and competitor pricing are negligible, consistent with the supply of trips being very elastic. Although cash payments naturally increase the fraction of users that pay exclusively with cash, more than half of the users have access to both cards and cash, and alternate between payment methods. We find evidence consistent with cash and card payments being imperfectly substitutable at both the intensive and extensive margins, which magnifies the impact of policies that restrict the availability of payment methods.

Suggested Citation

  • Fernando E. Alvarez & David O. Argente, 2020. "On the Effects of the Availability of Means of Payments: The Case of Uber," NBER Working Papers 28145, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:28145
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Briglevics, Tamás & Schuh, Scott, 2014. "This is what's in your wallet... and how you use it," Working Paper Series 1684, European Central Bank.
    2. Sergei Koulayev & Marc Rysman & Scott Schuh & Joanna Stavins, 2016. "Explaining adoption and use of payment instruments by US consumers," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 47(2), pages 293-325, May.
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    5. Alexei Deviatov & Neil Wallace, 2014. "Optimal inflation in a model of inside money," Review of Economic Dynamics, Elsevier for the Society for Economic Dynamics, vol. 17(2), pages 287-293, April.
    6. Alvarez, Fernando & Lippi, Francesco, 2017. "Cash burns: An inventory model with a cash-credit choice," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 90(C), pages 99-112.
    7. Carlos A. Arango & Dylan Hogg & Alyssa Lee, 2015. "Why Is Cash (Still) So Entrenched? Insights From Canadian Shopping Diaries," Contemporary Economic Policy, Western Economic Association International, vol. 33(1), pages 141-158, January.
    8. Firpo Sergio & Possebom Vitor, 2018. "Synthetic Control Method: Inference, Sensitivity Analysis and Confidence Sets," Journal of Causal Inference, De Gruyter, vol. 6(2), pages 1-26, September.
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    10. Fernando E. Alvarez & David O. Argente, 2020. "Consumer Surplus of Alternative Payment Methods: Paying Uber with Cash," NBER Working Papers 28133, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Lucas A. Mariani & Jose Renato Haas Ornelas & Bernardo Ricca, 2023. "Banks’ Physical Footprint and Financial Technology Adoption," Working Papers Series 576, Central Bank of Brazil, Research Department.
    2. Alvarez, Fernando & Argente, David & Jimenez, Rafael & Lippi, Francesco, 2022. "Cash: A Blessing or a curse?," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 125(C), pages 85-128.
    3. Brendon McConnell, 2023. "What's Logs Got to do With it: On the Perils of log Dependent Variables and Difference-in-Differences," Papers 2308.00167, arXiv.org, revised Aug 2023.
    4. Mariani, Lucas A. & Haas Ornelas, José Renato & Ricca, Bernardo, 2023. "Banks’ Physical Footprint and Financial Technology Adoption," IDB Publications (Working Papers) 12812, Inter-American Development Bank.
    5. Fernando E. Alvarez & David Argente & Diana Van Patten, 2022. "Are Cryptocurrencies Currencies? Bitcoin as Legal Tender in El Salvador," NBER Working Papers 29968, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    6. Christensen, Peter & Osman, Adam, 2021. "The Demand for Mobility: Evidence from an Experiment with Uber Riders," IZA Discussion Papers 14179, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    7. Raphael Auer & Giulio Cornelli & Jon Frost, 2022. "The pandemic, cash and retail payment behaviour: insights from the future of payments database," BIS Working Papers 1055, Bank for International Settlements.

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    JEL classification:

    • E41 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Money and Interest Rates - - - Demand for Money

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