In the previous episodes, we explored a range of examples showing how small digital payments play a central role in very different ways. We saw that microtransactions in some areas barely suffice to keep up with the business models of the pre-digital era — for instance, in journalism. At the same time, they are opening up entirely new and lucrative markets elsewhere — as in gaming. And what about us? We often enjoy the convenience and simplicity of digital payments, yet we easily lose track and control — especially when paying quickly online.
In this fourth and final episode of our series on small money, we want to take a more fundamental look: Who profits from small digital payments? Why can I now pay even tiny amounts at the bakery by card without any extra fees? What are the things that digital money — when it comes to small sums — still cannot do as well as cash? How does digital payment reinforce dynamics of social inequality? And what does that mean for our society?
Digitalgelddickicht Season Small Money – Episode 4 (German only) | 23 June 2025
Guests
Sebastian Omlor is Professor of Civil Law, Commercial and Business Law, Banking Law, and Comparative Law at Philipps University Marburg, and Founding Director of the Marburg Institute for the Law of Digitalization.
Christian Engel works as a Senior Payments Consultant at msg for banking, a major German IT consulting company.
Barbara Brandl is Professor of Sociology with a focus on Organization and Economy at Goethe University Frankfurt. She is also a member of the ZEVEDI project group on Tokenization and Financial Markets.
Further Information
Background information on the PIX payment system can be found here, and more about the microtransaction service provider — Satoshipay — is available here.