New figures from the payment institute Bankomat show that in the second half of 2022, every Swede withdrew an average of SEK 523 a month, or a total of SEK 33 billion.
The figure is almost identical to the same period in 2021 (522 kroner) and is interpreted by Bankomat as that global events such as the pandemic and above all the Ukraine war have made Swedes now feel a greater need to have cash in their wallets.
“When the war broke out, we saw a huge demand to withdraw cash, but there was nothing to suggest that they started using cash as a means of payment without it being available instead,” says customer and marketing manager Johan Nilsson to TT.
Decreased continuously
According to Johan Nilsson, the use of cash has decreased by 8–10 percent per year. The pandemic years and the outbreak of war are seen as one-off effects, but an important conclusion can still be drawn:
— The interpretation is that we are starting to get down to some kind of basic use of cash. It is the part of the population that wants or must have cash to manage their everyday finances, says Johan Nilsson.
– We also see that withdrawal behavior during the season has changed. Previously, we could have clear peaks around summer, Christmas and New Year, but it is starting to level off now. Those who withdraw cash to buy ice cream on holiday are not so many anymore, but these are those who use cash in everyday life.
ATM’s figures also agree well with the Riksbank’s latest payment survey from December. Then only 30 percent stated that they had used cash in the last month compared to 50 percent two years earlier. Instead, households use debit cards, Swish or pay directly on their mobile phones.
The machines disappear
The bank today has 1,500 cash machines compared to roughly 2,000 at the start in 2013. However, Johan Nilsson says that eventually it is believed to reach a base level in terms of the number.
— It might end at around 1,000 machines, we will not go lower. Then we are not the only vending machine operator in Sweden, but there are others who have a total of 600-700 pieces together.
The changed consumer behavior as well as the fact that many shops and restaurants now do not accept cash has also been noticed by the Riksbank, which previously came out and demanded a law that secures the possibility of using cash in Sweden. The issue is currently being investigated in the so-called payment investigation, which is led by former moderate leader Anna Kinberg Batra and which is to be presented by March 31 at the latest.
“Instead of, for example, legislating because you have to receive, we think that you should use other means to ensure that it is reasonable costs to manage the cash register, such as subsidizing the transport of valuables,” says Johan Nilsson.