Cash has a unique role as a reliable payment method when digital systems fail, which can happen in, for example, power outages, cyber attacks or other crisis situations. The Riksbank believes that cash acts as a safety valve in such situations and that society therefore needs to protect access to it.
During a press conference on 25 September, where a new lower policy rate was presented, the governor of the Riksbank chose Erik Thedéen to direct attention to another issue – the call to Swedes to start using cash more often, it reports DN.
While digital payment solutions are rapidly growing in popularity, he now wants to remind us of the importance of cash continuing to have a place in Swedish society and now warns that parts of Sweden may in the near future be completely without access to cash.
Erik Thedéen’s call from the press conference remains as a clear reminder:
– Get started, he said then.
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The situation is urgent
The call comes in light of the Riksbank’s long-term work to defend the role of cash in Swedish society. For several years, the authority has warned of a decreasing supply of cash, and now the situation is deemed to be urgent.
There is a great risk that the cash chain may stop working in all or parts of the country. In order for people to be able to use cash in practice when shopping, business owners must in turn be able to deposit the cash into their bank accounts.
According to the Riksbank, it is currently not the banks, but a single private actor – the cash transport company Loomis – that ensures that traders in Sweden can get rid of their cash.
– If Loomis did not exist, or if they chose to withdraw from certain parts of Sweden, the companies located in those parts of the country would find it more difficult to use cash in their operations, says Christina Wejshammarhead of the Riksbank’s payments department.
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Risks excluding groups
The Riksbank believes that the big banks have a great responsibility when it comes to Sweden’s preparedness. In recent years, the banks’ costs for cash handling have decreased by almost three billion kroner between 2009 and 2022.
The Riksbank’s proposal means that the banks must bear the cost of more extensive cash handling, as this is considered part of their social responsibility.
In addition to the issue of preparedness, the Riksbank’s warnings also deal with justice and inclusion. The increasingly digital economy risks excluding certain groups from participating in society. It mainly concerns the elderly, people in rural areas and those who, for various reasons, find it difficult to adapt to digital solutions.
Björn Erikssonformer national police chief and initiator of the Cash Uprising, has long fought to increase access to cash in Sweden. He now welcomes the Riksbank’s proposal.
– They are excellent, we have worked for this since 2015. For us, it is about all people being able to participate in society on equal terms. Now the preparedness issues have ended up high on everyone’s agenda, and all of a sudden more people have understood that the cash is important, he tells DN.
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