Exploring Payment Trends in the Euro Area: Insights from the ECB's SPACE Study

The European Central Bank (ECB) conducts the Study on the Payment Attitudes of Consumers in the Euro Area (SPACE) to analyse how consumers in euro area countries use and perceive various payment methods. This research offers valuable insights into payment behaviors, aiding the Eurosystem in monitoring trends and shaping cash and retail payment strategies.

 

2024 Study Results

• Payment Behavior: Cash remains the most frequently used payment method in physical stores, though its usage has declined further. Digital payments continue to rise, albeit at a slower pace, with cards being the most popular, and mobile app usage increasing.

• Payment Preferences: Over half of euro area consumers prefer cards and other digital payment methods. Nonetheless, a majority value having the option to pay with cash.

• Access and Acceptance: While most consumers are satisfied with their access to cash, this number has slightly decreased. Cash is widely accepted for payments at physical locations, though acceptance levels vary across countries. The availability of electronic payment options has increased in all euro area nations.

Understanding consumer payment attitudes is crucial for the ECB and national central banks to adapt to evolving payment landscapes and ensure effective monetary policy implementation.

Ireland 

Payments using a mobile device accounted for more than 10 per cent of Point of Sale (POS) transactions in the Netherlands, Finland and Ireland. The use of mobile payments has been growing relatively slowly in some parts of the euro area and the share of mobile payments was less than 5 per cent in seven euro area countries.

The report notes that cash can be accessed or withdrawn from a wide variety of sources such as bank branches, ATMs, or cashback and cash-in-shop services where and when retailers offer them. As was the case in SPACE 2022, ATMs remained the preferred method of withdrawing cash with over 79 per cent of citizens using this option. Withdrawals via bank counters were the next preferred option at the euro area level (which includes post offices in countries where this is applicable). Cashback was the second preferred option in Malta (15 per cent), Germany (12 per cent), Cyprus (9 per cent) and Ireland (8 per cent).

In Spain and Portugal, the majority of respondents said they make a special journey to obtain cash (36 per cent and 34 per cent respectively). In Ireland, it's 23 per cent with the second most popular option combining the journey to obtain cash with the commute to either work or school.

Another consideration apart from ease of access are the fees to be paid for ATM withdrawals, which may in turn influence cash withdrawal patterns and in cases where there are no alternative sources of cash, may exacerbate access-related problems. In 16 of the euro area countries, more than half of respondents reported not having to pay any fees. One exception is Ireland, where 30 per cent of respondents reported never having to pay a fee, 21 per cent said they always pay a fee when withdrawing cash and another 12 per cent that they pay a fee most of the time. 

As more and more of our daily banking and financial transactions move online, ensuring that we all have the skills to keep our money safe will require constant innovation. Also, ensuring access to cash and the ability to spend it must remain a viable option for those that require it.