Cash exceeded by credit card for the first time in France

The publication of Bulletin 256 of the Bank of France concerning the use of means of payment in France is marked by an unprecedented event. The number of cash payments made in local shops was exceeded by card payments in 2024. This is simply the first time that this finding has been established.

FACTS

• The Bank of France points out that cash is being used less and less in France in an increasingly digital and dematerialised environment.

• While the downward trend has been towards the use of species on a European scale since 2016, this is particularly evident in France. French consumers crossed a major course in 2024, using the card more than cash to settle their purchases in local shops.

• For the first time, the use of the card in number of transactions thus amounts to 48% and thus exceeds that of cash, estimated at 43%.

• This change in usage represents a shift even if the cash retains the interest of the French, who, to a large extent, continue to consider them as an indispensable means of payment.

ISSUES

• A global transition : The Bank of France's new publication echoes the Fourth survey on consumer payment habits in the euro area carried out by the European Central Bank. This included a survey conducted between September 2023 and June 2024 among the local population, the results of which were published in December 2024. She highlighted the transition to European-wide means of payment, marked by the decline of cash to the growth of card and mobile payments.

• A forward guard position The Bank of France's analysis today highlights the fact that France is now at the forefront of the ongoing transition to Scriptural Payment.

PERSPECTIVE

• This increase in French physical shops reflects the overall trend of payments in France, of which 25% are now made online (compared with an average of 21% in the euro area). While 73% of transactions still occur in local shops, this figure was 84% five years ago.

• The card has also become the main payment method for online transactions for several years. This represents 53% of online payments.

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