Cash Payments Disappearing from Eurozone Stores

The European Central Bank (ECB) has sounded an alarm about the rapid shift towards digital payments in the eurozone, warning that cash may gradually fall out of use. According to a recent ECB survey, although 92% of companies in the euro area still accept cash payments, nearly half of those surveyed have invested in cashless checkouts and are reducing the number of places where customers can pay with banknotes and coins.

Some 48% of companies do not allow cash payments at self-service checkouts, which is a concern for the ECB. The central bank fears that if cash becomes increasingly difficult to use, consumers may start to perceive it as an impractical payment method.

The survey found significant differences in cash acceptance rates across countries, with Cyprus being the most uncertain, where 51% of companies said they might not accept cash in the future. Meanwhile, the number of companies accepting card payments has remained stable at 88%, and mobile payment adoption has nearly doubled from 36 to 68%.