Switzerland’s economy is showing early signs of complete digitalization, as digital transactions have now surpassed cash payments, according to a new survey.
Switzerland has long favored cash, with the average person holding around $10,481 in bills and coins. It’s been a cultural norm, valued for privacy and ease. But a new survey from the Swiss National Bank appears to show that debit cards have now edged out cash as the most common way to pay.
The survey found that in 2024, 35% of in-store purchases in Switzerland were made with debit cards, overtaking cash, which made up 30%. That’s a big jump from 2017, when only 21% of payments were made with cards, and 70% were still in cash.
For years, the Swiss held onto their cash-based culture, even as digital payments became more popular elsewhere. But now experts say the shift to cashless payments isn’t all that surprising.
In an interview with Bloomberg, Alexander Koch, an economist at Raiffeisen Switzerland, said international comparisons “show that German-speaking countries in particular are very attached to cash, unlike the Netherlands and Scandinavia.” He also noted that the pandemic “has accelerated the move away from it also here.”
Opportunity for Swiss stablecoin
Despite the growing trend of digital payments, Switzerland remains one of the world’s top holders of cash. The country is ranked second for the largest average cash holdings per person, next only to Luxembourg.
Yet, the shift away from cash continues. The SNB’s October announcement that public transport operators are planning to reduce cash acceptance further underscores this trend. In an interview with crypto.news, Dominic Weibel, head of research at Bitcoin Suisse AG, suggested that Switzerland’s increasing adoption of cards to cash “signals a broader openness to digital forms of money.”
“While crypto payments remain niche today, the transition to digital means of payments creates
fertile soil for utility, especially given that 8% of the global population now own crypto. Worldline already supports crypto at +85,000 merchants, and cities like Lugano for instance are accepting Bitcoin or stablecoins for everyday transactions.”Dominic Weibel
Weibel also pointed to cities like Lugano, where Bitcoin (BTC) and stablecoins are already being accepted for everyday transactions, as a sign of growing acceptance.
“We expect adoption to develop from a novel concept into broader optionality in the retail domain, although at a relatively slower pace than in other countries where debasing domestic currencies catalyse demand for tokenized dollars.”
Dominic Weibel
The SNB’s survey also revealed that 18% of payments in the country were made via mobile payment apps, while credit cards accounted for 14%. Addressing the growing acceptance of mobile payments, Weibel sees a significant role for stablecoins and tokenized assets in Switzerland’s evolving landscape, saying that stablecoins are “positioned to capture the largest piece of the cake since they remove the volatility headache linked to crypto assets.”
“While dollar denominated stablecoins currently sport 99% market penetration, there is substantial opportunity for a Swiss stablecoin. The increasing adoption of mobile payment apps like TWINT already indicate the willingness to embrace novel payment technology.”
Dominic Weibel
The next logical step, Weibel argues, is tokenized Swiss francs that can “plug into both mobile apps to streamline payments while unlocking novel functionality like instant settlement, smart contract automation and the opportunities of decentralized finance.”
No rush with CBDC
Despite the country’s increasing reliance on digital payments, the SNB has made it clear that it does not intend to rush the introduction of a central bank digital currency, particularly as it remains cautious about the potential costs and privacy concerns associated with digital money.
As Thomas Moser, a senior economist at the SNB, explained in a 2021 interview with finews, the central bank is wary of replacing cash with CBDC as “risks outweigh the benefits compared to the existing systems.”
Moser further emphasized that one key factor in Switzerland’s reluctance to introduce the so-called e-franc is its focus on data protection, noting that “one advantage of cash is that you can use it to pay completely anonymously.”
“If, on the other hand, you pay digitally, a lot of data is generated. Not only financial data but also data about what you buy and where you are at any given time.”
Thomas Moser
As cash usage declining in Switzerland, Weibel pointed to the recent developments in Swiss banks, such as UBS’s issuance of digital bonds and the active running of the SNB’s wholesale CBDC pilot. He pointed put that institutional engagement with blockchain infrastructure is “demonstrating clear acceleration,” adding that Bitcoin Suisse AG expects this trend to “manifest further across multiple institutional verticals in the months and years ahead.”
