From NPR:
Technology is changing pretty much everything these days, including money and even what we think money is. Bill Maurer is the Dean of Social Sciences and an Anthropology professor at UC Irvine. He studies and navigates the brave new world of alternative payments — things like using your cell phone to pay for your coffee or Amazon rewards points to buy a new TV. "Mobile is really shaking up the payment space, and opening up new vistas for innovation and entrepreneurship," Maurer says. “People always joke around about how the mobile has replaced the wallet as the thing that people fear losing or leaving behind most. People can go through the whole day without their wallet and not really stress out about it too much, but really get anxious when they don't have their phone nearby or if their service goes down."

For the full story and an audio recording, visit http://www.marketplace.org/topics/your-money/world-alternative-currencies.