Months ago, back in the winter, I started planning for Father’s Day this year. I had big plans—a whole editorial spread along with this Ekster review, for starters—but as you can imagine, I ended up getting a little waylaid. In these tough times of coronavirus and protests, however, the hero product for my feature remained… and felt even more relevant. 

Order for Father’s Day and get 35% off with code DAD35! (Valid June 19, 2020, at time of publication.)

Why a wallet?

Honestly? It’s just this wallet. It’s the smooth leather, the variety of finishes (I can’t tell you how happy I was to see a wallet designed “for men” that didn’t just come in black and brown), and the unique design. The Ekster Parliament Wallet ($89 USD) featured in this Ekster review has a spring-loaded design that works well… and feels more than a little Kickstartery. It’s minimalism, but made for those who tend to err on the side of maximalism. 

It feels clean and works like a luxury product, and the slim profile is great for anyone. It’s light enough to keep in a pocket, but keeps down the clutter in your bag, too. The small size of Ekster’s products forces you to pare down your cards; it won’t fit all eight of my bubble tea stamp cards along with my gift cards, essentials, and business cards, so something has to go. 

(My coffee cards and store credits got the axe. Why drink a beverage without a snack when you could just as easily be stamping your way to a free beverage with a snack inside??)

(See also: my love for extra dirty martinis — shaken to the point of bruising, if I can find a willing compatriot behind the bar.)

Unfortunately, as with most modern minimalist wallets, the Ekster Parliament wallet has a men’s design feature that tends to irk me: there isn’t anywhere to store your coins. I really appreciate that the Ekster Parliament has a cash strap for bills, but what am I supposed to do with my spare change? Why are all of the super sleek small leather goods always Like This™?

The Ekster Parliament from the top. I can fit a max of five cards in the pop-up slot, plus two in the flap and one (or the tracker) in the back.

Ekster review: The Ekster Parliament Wallet

I often joke that I’m my partner’s coin collector. He’s used a Parliament-style wallet for years, and as a result, he’s always leaving little trails of coins behind them — change on the dresser, on the floor, on the washing machine, in the washing machine; you name it. I have no idea where it comes from, because I don’t think I’ve ever seen him handle cash in his life, but it’s always there (somehow).

But there’s something very sleek and classy about never having change on you. It’s lighter, and easier to manage. It says I never take the bus and someone else buys my groceries and sure, you can have a $4.50 tip on this $5.50 Americano. I imagine that the kind of person who would seek out an Ekster review is the kind of always-suited, dark-jeans-only person who doesn’t carry coins to begin with, and really… am I wrong?

The Ekster Parliament is lovely. It comes in a smooth leather finish (a little thin, but very nice). The wallet I was sent for my Ekster review is in their Merlot Red finish, and it looks ridiculously good right out of the box. There’s a little bit of unevenness in the way the leather is dyed, and it makes it look almost as if it has a light patina to it already.

(For serious leather-lovers, you can get this RFID-blocking wallet in limited-edition matte or vachetta finishes, as well. You’ll also be able to get your hands on a vegan leather soon, which the company claims is indistinguishable from their regular leather!)

I can fit a maximum of five cards in my Ekster Parliament’s spring-loaded compartment, plus two more in the inside flap and one (or their tracker) in the back.

Ekster Parliament Wallet in Merlot Red with the Ekster Tracker Card

Track your Ekster

I don’t tend to lose things, but it’s a common occurrence in my family. (My dad recently lost his wallet for weeks… my mom found it in his bedside table. Talks were had.)

The Ekster is designed to fit a crowd-sourced GPS, which is shaped like a thick, short credit card and fits in any of the Parliament’s card slots. It’s solar powered, needing only a 3 hour charge in the sun to last 1-2 months, and features a two-way ringer with the Chipolo app. (The card is quiet, like a little midi controller; the two-press function to make your phone ring is as loud as you want.)

I set up my tracker using Apple’s log-in for Chipolo, which was incredibly easy: one thumbprint touch, a single Tracker Card button press, and I was good to go. I don’t know if it was the iOS update that I did last night or just Ekster’s tech, but I’ve never had this easy of a time with anything Bluetooth.

Ekster’s Tracker Card costs extra ($49 USD), which I actually really like. It means that people like me (who would rather have the extra card slot) don’t have to pay for it, and people like my dad (or my sister’s boyfriend, or my boyfriend, or my best friend… or basically anyone else in our lives, because Chens are apparently exclusively attracted to people with ADHD) can add it to their order for a very reasonable price.

Use code TRACKER30 for 30% off your Ekster Tracker (valid at time of publication, June 19, 2020).

The problem with cashless 

Cashless economies have a few different sides. During regular times, they’re pretty problematic. Sure, they streamline your wallet and speed up your shopping transactions (the Parliament’s spring-loaded mechanism makes card retrieval crazy fast), but they also present very clear barriers to access. Businesses that don’t accept cash are exclusionary by their nature, automatically denying access to anyone without a bank account or credit card.

When a business goes cashless, it essentially closes its doors to some of society’s most marginalized — which, if you ask me, is a jerk move all around. We know that in countries like the US, the unbanked and underbanked are disproportionately BIPOC. Of households without a bank account, 21.7% are Black, 19.3% are Hispanic, and 15.5% are Native American.

UNBANKED: Adults or households that do not have a bank account. This may be due to factors including a lack of access to a nearby bank, a lack of a government ID or physical mailing address, or an inability to meet a minimum balance fee. People who are underbanked often have to pay more to access their money due to high rates at money lenders. (Source for unbanked.)

UNDERBANKED: Adults or households that have access to a bank account, but cannot have all of their needs met by the bank. For instance: people who end up Renting-To-Own due to redlining. (Source for underbanked, source for unbanked vs underbanked. See this problem in Canada.)

When a wallet goes cashless, it excludes anyone who carries bills or coins by necessity. On top of excluding people who are unbanked, it also excludes people who have a bank account and routinely use credit, but (for instance) may need to carry change around for bus fare.

Right now, cashless business is a stop-gap. It’s a bandage. It’s not a long-term solution, but it’s a good compromise. For now, I’m really appreciating my Ekster wallet — not just because it’s so well-made, but also because no-contact payment systems help keep workers safe in times like this.

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Disclaimer: This wallet was submitted by PR for editorial consideration only. I’ve had cashless economies on my mind since reading this great Eater post, but don’t let that fool you: I do really like the option to go cashless as a consumer, which is very different than going cashless as a business. (The first affects just you; the second has an effect on others!)

If you buy a coinless wallet after reading this Ekster review, I urge you to make sure you have a little bit of cash in there regardless. You wouldn’t believe the number of times I end up paying for other people in line because no one carries cash anymore!!