The euro as a physical currency is an attractive and widely used means of payment, and that will continue to be the case in future. In Germany, approximately three out of every four payments are still settled in cash at the point of sale.
Yet despite its affinity to cash, Germany is by no means the spearhead in terms of cash usage in the euro area. In Austria and the southern European countries, the share of cash payments is higher still. It is for this reason that the Governing Council of the ECB has also expressed a clear commitment to cash.