An average of around one in five Europeans would use the digital euro âseveral times a weekâ if the proposed central bank digital currency is introduced (15-21%) and just over one in four expect it to be used as a supplement to existing payment methods (26%), according to a BearingPoint survey.
The consultancy firmâs survey of consumers in seven European countries also found that respondents would use the digital euro primarily for online and daily shopping purchases, and that the key criteria for adoption would be that it is free of charge and universally accepted for both online and offline transactions.
âTrust in data security is seen as a more important criterion for usage than a great user experience,â the researchers add.
âThe results of the survey show a very heterogeneous picture in terms of entrustment of transaction data.
âIn Finland, 58% of respondents would entrust transaction data to their bank, compared to only 7% in the Netherlands. Entrustment of data to the central bank is most pronounced in the Netherlands (27%) and even ahead of Switzerland (21%).
âVery few respondents would want to entrust their transaction data to technology companies such as Apple, Google, or Amazon.â
Cash usage
The findings also show, however, that cash remains âthe major form of payment across Europeâ with cash use âsignificantly higherâ in Austria (79%) and Germany (71%), ârelatively highâ in Switzerland (63%), Ireland (61%), the Netherlands (57%) and France (55%) and âsignificantly lowerâ in Finland (43%).
âThe popularity of cash is also reflected in the frequency of use. Multi-weekly use is pronounced in Austria (73%) and Germany (66%), while only 19% of respondents in Finland use cash several times a week,â the researchers say.
Respondents in Finland were also most likely to say that they expect cash to stop being used in the next five years, with more than one in three agreeing with the statement. This is a contrast with Austria, where 78% of respondents disagreed, and the other surveyed countries, where an average of 63% disagreed.
âIn the countries with the highest cash use, Austria and Germany, the expectation is that the digital euro will be used less frequently than cash. In Finland, the country with the lowest cash use, the digital euro is expected to be used more frequently than cash,â the researchers say.
One in five Europeans would use digital euro âseveral times a weekâ was written by Tom Phillips and published by NFCW.
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