Back in the late 60s and early 70s the banks in Ireland went on strike to protest some laws. They thought that they’d cripple the economy and people would demand they reopen. Instead, people used cash for most transactions and if they needed to write a check they’d go down to the pub and the pub owner would vouch for their credit. The banks eventually gave up because their tantrum didn’t work.
Another example was when the British pulled out of Hong Kong. People who were paid with checks from a British bank would just endorse the check to someone else, who’d endorse it to someone else, who’d endorse it to someone else. The checks were rarely cashed, they just kept circulating.