Sweden

The Riksbank calls for urgent action to strengthen cash's position and access, to guarantee financial and social inclusion, and to ensure civil preparedness. Retailers should be obliged to accept cash as payment for essential goods. Banks should be obliged to accept consumer cash deposits.

In Sweden, an inquiry concludes that the state should ensure better access to payments, recommends mandating cash acceptance, and sees no current need for a digital krona.

Digital payments dominate retail transactions in Sweden, but cash usage has not declined to irrelevance.

Sweden, once the poster child of a society without cash, is increasing the number of cash centres and ATMs to ensure access to cash for all.

Nina Wenning, the CEO of Bankomat, the Swedish bank-owned ATM operator calls for the central bank to incentivise retailers to accept cash by subsidising the cash cycle.

Riksbank governor calls for stronger legal protection for cash. The Central Bank recommends to review the concept of legal tender. “If it were to be established by law that one was forced to accept cash in Sweden, more of us would probably choose to have cash in our wallets.” says Ingves.

Sweden and Zimbabwe, two countries that have gone far down the path to a cashless society, highlight the pitfalls of such thinking. Sweden shows the need to safeguard access to cash. Zimbabwe shows the importance of the transition not being forced.

In Sweden, a new law came into effect on January 1st requiring banks to provide an adequate level of cash services. The central bank now says that there is no evidence that banknotes spread coronavirus.

In Sweden, new legislation was enacted on 1 January requiring banks to provide cash services. The UK Treasury has announced it would also introduce new regulations to protect access to cash.

The European Cash Management sector sees further consolidation as Loomis has entered into an agreement to acquire Nokas Värdehantering, a Swedish subsidiary of Norway’s Nokas Kontandhåntering.

The European Central Bank has delivered a legal opinion supporting the draft law proposed by the Swedish government, which aims at guaranteeing that the largest banks provide a minimum level of cash services throughout the country.

Canada and Sweden have both experienced a decline in transactional demand for cash. While Sweden has seen an overall decline in cash in circulation in relation to GDP over the past decade, Canada’s demand, on the contrary, has been stable. This discussion paper, released by the Bank of Canada, compares the evolution in both countries.