Emptying The Tills: Europe’s Disappearing Cash

Only tourists pay in cash, says the young barista in Espresso House, a Swedish coffee chain, on Vasagatan in Stockholm. “They don’t understand we don’t use that anymore,” she rolls her eyes, gesturing to the card machine. The contactless “taps” that locals use are much faster, and she frequently runs out of change when foreigners bring large-denomination notes, fresh from the ATM. Swedes rarely handle cash; the volume of card payments has increased tenfold since 2000 and only one in five payments—5-7% if measured by value—are made in cash today. In much of northern Europe the situation is similar, with “no cash” signs increasingly popping up in shop windows. But travel south or east and a different picture arises; in Italy 83% of payments are still in cash. Whereas Norwegians made 456 electronic transactions per person last year, Italians made only 67 and Romanians 17, according to the Boston Consulting Group. Most surprising is Germany’s reluctance to dispense with “real money”. Over three-quarters of German payments are still made in cash and “cash only” signs are not that uncommon. Read more at The Economist.