As I am huge payments nerd, I love reading through the very detailed surveys that the Fed and European Central Bank (ECB) produce, because I am always keen to see if there are trends emerging. The ECB latest survey is out now, and at least one trend is clear.
At a high level, the results are what you would expect. Around a fifth of European consumers’ day-to-day payments were made online, accounting for more than a third of consumer payments by value, and while the proportion of transactions conducted in cash continued to fall, cash is still half of all transactions at physical point of sale (POS).
(In terms of value, the most important single payment instrument was cards, but their share has fallen slightly since the last survey.)
If we focus on online transactions, almost half were in cards. The share of e-payment solutions (ie, digital wallets and mobile apps) was at 29% (up from 26%).
The large majority of recurring payments were made using direct debit, with credit transfers ranking in second place.
In 2024, 55% of euro area consumers expressed a preference for cards and other cashless payments when paying in a shop, while 22% preferred cash and 23% had no clear preference. Stated payment preferences were unchanged from 2022.
An increasing majority of euro area consumers, amounting to 62% (60%), considered it important or very important to have cash as a payment option. The perceived key advantages of cash were, first, its anonymity and protection of privacy and, second, the perception that it makes consumers more aware of their own expenses. This tied in with the majority of euro area consumers (58%) said they were concerned about their privacy when performing digital payments or other banking activities.
Most euro area consumers said they were satisfied with their access to cash, but this satisfaction has decreased slightly. A large majority, i.e. 87% (89%) of consumers, find it fairly easy or very easy to get to an ATM or a bank. Most consumers, i.e. 57%, never paid a fee when withdrawing cash from an ATM whereas 11% paid a fee always or most of the time.
A majority of euro area consumers (57%) said they had the option of withdrawing cash at shop counters.
The share of euro area consumers holding a payment account increased from 91% in 2022 to 93% in 2024. The share of consumers who own a payment card decreased from 94% in 2022 to 92% in 2024.
In 2024, 24% of euro area consumers reported that in the past month the payment method they would have preferred to use at physical locations was not always offered by the merchant or payee.
Snippings 