Against the background of inflation, more and more people in France are paying in cash again instead of with a bank card or cell phone. Why are you doing that?
In view of inflation, people in France are increasingly turning to cash again. In the first half of 2023, the amount of cash withdrawn from ATMs increased by five percent compared to the same period last year, the newspaper “Les Échos” reported on Thursday in Paris, citing information from the bank card service provider GIE Cartes Bancaires.
After years of decline in the use of cash – 50 percent of payments in France are now made by card or cell phone – the number of cash withdrawals has increased slightly again.
On the one hand, this is due to the fact that expenses that people usually make with cash have become more expensive. On the other hand, when budgets are tight, people like to use cash to keep track of their expenses and not overdraw their accounts with card payments, a spokesman for the Banque de France told the business newspaper. The UK Finance association recently reported a similar trend in Great Britain.
“We have been observing an increase in cash withdrawals in our branches for several months,” said the head of a large banking network to “Les Échos”. “We have more and more customers purchasing cash envelopes to better control their spending given the current price increases.” “Cash stuffing,” which is also touted on social media, consists of setting a budget for certain household areas and managing it in envelopes to make it easier to keep an eye on and reduce expenses. There are also people who use cash to put it aside and save it.
Report Les Echos Communication UK Finance
Source: Stern
