More than 4 out of 10 French people make less than one cash withdrawal per month on average. If the species seem threatened, it is because other means of payment are developing.
With the diversification of means of payment and the progress of dematerialization, uses have evolved, and there is one that suffers: the cash dispenser. There are 47,853 today in France, when there were more than 55,000 in 2015. The fall should continue, especially since several establishments plan to combine their offer. Let’s go around the question and see what are the alternatives favored by the French.
The French still need money, but it is no longer their priority
The observation is hard. According to a study by the comparator Panorabanques (a subsidiary of the M6 group), 7% of French people never make withdrawals from distributors, a statistic that grows year after year. Worse, on average they only make one and a half withdrawals per month, and they are even more than 4 out of 10 to make less than one per month.
We will not speak here of a bad patch, because we are indeed facing a gradual change in habits. Bank cards allowed consumers to take the first step. But contactless payment, then payment using your smartphone, added another layer.
However, we can say that 93% of French people still need money quite regularly. But that is not enough. It is the bank card which is the preferred means of payment for consumers. They are 98% to use one, the majority with immediate debit (76%, against 24% for the deferred debit card).
Adopting more accessible means of payment does not work in favor of cash
Faced with the decline in purchasing power and the rise of online shopping, the French logically use appropriate means of payment, without forgetting that many merchants have dropped the ballast on the minimum amount required to pay by card. Moreover, 81% of consumers use contactless payment, which is still limited to 50 euros per transaction.
Mobile payment continues to grow in popularity. It is used by 23% of us, more among 18-34 year olds (41%) than among those over 66 (10%). But habits are changing, as we said, and the probable free future of all instant transfers (requested by the European Commission) should not help ATMs.
Regarding the latter, if there is fear of cash deserts comparable to medical deserts, the Banque de France explains that it has taken matters into its own hands. It indicates that machine removals only affect cities of a certain size. Not sure that this is enough to reassure the inhabitants of villages and small towns…
Source : Panorabanques on LinkedIn
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