Writing anonymously, Sugarplum suggests:
Customer sends cash or money order to digital bank, along with a floppy with an anonymous email address (via a remailer) and a public key. The bank emails the customer encrypted digital cash corresponding to the amount he sent in (minus any service charges).
The problem with this is that the bank or clerks aren't accountable - they can pocket the snail-cash and not send the digicash "Oh, darn, the floppy's blank" or "Oh, darn, the email bounced" "Guess there's nothing I can do, what a shame" just as they could if you snailmailed cash to a conventional account. If you're sending non-accountable-by-sender cash, you need some way to get a receipt. If you're mailing a check or digicash, you have a way to repudiate the transaction or at least make a claim against them, or if you can go in to the bank in person for the transactions with cash. Bill # Bill Stewart wcs@anchor.ho.att.com +1-908-949-0705 Fax-4876 # AT&T Bell Labs, Room 4M-312, Crawfords Corner Rd, Holmdel, NJ 07733-3030