The 5 European countries closest to a cashless future
Is your country headed for a cashless future? The shift to a cash-free society may happen sooner than you think!
6 min read
Before COVID-19, many countries were already heading towards a completely cashless future. But, the increase in contactless payments and online shopping triggered by the pandemic saw a huge shift from cash to cashless payments globally—but just not at the same speed. Even in Europe, payment preferences still vary wildly. But, there’s a handful of countries that are leading the cashless revolution. Here are the top 5 European countries closest to a cashless future.
There isn’t a Europe-wide uniform method for tracking cashless payments
That being said, there’s still a wealth of reliable data out there that gives us a solid understanding of exactly which European countries are leading the race to a cashless future. Read on to discover what we found out.
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Norway is the European country closest to a cashless future, according to data from the World Bank. Nearly all Norwegians (98%) own a debit card and Norway's central bank says that only 3–5% of all point of sale transactions were carried out with physical cash—with three out of every four card transactions being contactless. What’s more, over 95% of the population use mobile payment apps—and as of 2020, apps were the most popular way of transferring money peer-to-peer, accounting for nearly 80% of all transfers.However, Norway’s shift to becoming a fully cashless society has concerned some senior government officials. In 2021, the Finance Ministry requested that Oslo’s Financial Supervisory Authority establish a plan that guarantees banks will still offer physical cash to customers. This comes as a backlash to many Norwegian banks denying that it’s their responsibility to offer cash services, as has been the case in Sweden. An interesting by-product of heading towards a cashless future is an increased focus on digital currencies. In April 2021, Norway’s central bank publicly announced that it was researching digital currency options to help support the switch to a cash-free society.
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From Swiss shoppers dropping €43 per person on chocolates to 64% of European shoppers opting for second-hand gifts, here’s where our money goes during the holidays.
From Swiss shoppers dropping €43 per person on chocolates to 64% of European shoppers opting for second-hand gifts, here’s where our money goes during the holidays.
