Cash Trends and The Future of Cash in the Eurozone

At the European Cash Cycle last autumn, the presentation by Josef Vrana, Senior Banknote Issuance Expert, Directorate Banknotes for the European Central Bank (ECB), covered euro cash trends and the effect of COVID-19 to date. It also covered work to ensure that cash will remain for years to come and will continue as a viable means of payment for the next decade, in line with the ECB’s Cash 2030 Strategy.

As of September 2021, the value of euro cash in circulation had increased to €1.5 trillion and the number of banknotes to 27.5 billion pieces. The increased demand for cash due to the COVID-19 pandemic is consistent with increased demand experienced during other major crises, such as the financial crash of 2008 and the Russian ruble crisis in 2015.