Cash acceptance in euro area rises to 92 percent of firms
A new survey by the European Central Bank shows that 92 percent of physical-location businesses in the euro area accepted cash in 2026, up from 90 percent in 2024. Acceptance of mobile payments also surged from 36 percent to 68 percent over the same period.
Post-pandemic rebound and mobile surge
Cash acceptance among euro area companies selling goods and services in physical locations rose to 92 percent in 2026, rebounding from 90 percent in 2024 following post-pandemic declines.
The findings cover 8,205 firms across all 21 euro area countries surveyed between February and April 2026.
While card payment acceptance remained broadly stable at 88 percent, mobile payment adoption experienced a massive expansion, jumping from 36 percent to 68 percent over the two-year period.
Retailers, restaurants, hotels, and entertainment providers cited consumer preferences, transactional security, and ease of handling as primary drivers when choosing which payment rails to support at physical points of sale.
Pushing digital at point of sale
Despite high overall cash acceptance, 25 percent of euro area companies reported actively taking measures to promote digital payment options.
Corporate strategies include investing in cashless registers and reducing the number of cash-accepting tills, with 13 percent of surveyed firms introducing self-checkout terminals.
However, businesses still view physical currency as offering major structural advantages over digital alternatives, specifically highlighting privacy protection and operational reliability during system outages.
Resilient paper, fast mobile
Cash remains resilient while mobile payments rapidly conquer store counters.
Merchants value the privacy and offline reliability of notes, yet feel forced to invest in cashless hardware.
Legislative pushes to enforce cash acceptance seem redundant given sustained commercial demand.