Germany’s central bank says accessing cash is becoming tougher #NewsGerman

Germany’s supply of cash remains secure, despite the removal of thousands of ATMs and the closure of bank branches, but the future looks less certain, the German central bank said on Monday.

“Good cash availability in Germany will no longer be a matter of course in the future,” the Bundesbank said according to sections from its monthly report published on Monday.

According to the Bundesbank analysis, the vast majority of citizens can still get cash in cities where they live.

Around 80.7 million people, or 95.7% of the total population, live in communities with at least one Automated Teller Machine (ATM) or bank counter, but 3.6 million people have to leave their own communities to obtain cash from a bank.

Given financial institutions have been reducing the number of ATMs for years – in part because the cash machines are increasingly being blown up by criminals, causing considerable damage – the distances for consumers have often become longer.

The number of bank branches in Germany has more than halved from around 53,000 in 2002 to 21,000 in 2023. The number of ATMs initially rose to around 59,000 by 2018, but since then the number has fallen. In 2023, there were around 51,000 ATMs in Germany.

People across Germany live an average of 1.4 kilometres away from the nearest ATM or bank counter, the central bank data showed. In urban areas, the average distance is 1.1 km, in rural areas 1.9 km.

Despite the comparatively manageable distances, many people find it increasingly hard to access cash. In surveys conducted by the Bundesbank, the proportion of those who find it quite difficult or very difficult to get to an ATM or bank counter more than doubled from 6% in 2021 to 15% in 2023.

For many people, withdrawing cash at the till when paying for their shopping is an alternative. This so-called cashback feature is possible at 31,289 locations. On average, consumers have to travel 1.7 km to get to a shop with such an offer.

The Bundesbank stressed that withdrawing cash at the checkout is a supplement to ATMs and bank counters, not a substitute.

It notes that cash dispensed at the till does not have to be checked for quality or authenticity. This means “that cash that is no longer fit for circulation can continue to circulate unchecked. In contrast, banks can and must reliably check the quality and authenticity of cash.”