Austria is taking the first step in Europe toward total cash withdrawal. Since September 1, Oberbank—one of the leading regional institutions—has removed all ATMs from its branches in Bavaria and stopped dispensing cash at the counter. Thousands of clients can no longer obtain a single banknote directly from their bank.
The announcement came without prior communication. Those who went to the branches found only a sign directing them to supermarkets or ATMs of other banks. But even there, the conditions were restrictive: in many cases, additional fees were charged, and in supermarkets, cash withdrawals were only possible when making a purchase.
Oberbank justified its decision citing “changing customer habits,” noting that more and more people use online banking. The institution insists its future lies in offering advisory services, not cash handling. The move is part of a broader reduction in services: in 2022, it had already eliminated account statement printers and had drastically cut opening hours. In Unterschleißheim, near Munich, the branch is open only two hours a week.
The measure has triggered an intense social and political debate. The Senioren-Union (an association linked to Germany’s CDU) is demanding a “right to analog life,” meaning the possibility of continuing to carry out banking, administrative, or transport procedures without needing an internet connection. “We use digital technology, but it is not at the center of our lives,” emphasized its president, Helge Benda.
The case is especially sensitive in Austria, where cash use remains a cultural hallmark. Each year, citizens withdraw around €47 billion from ATMs, and two out of three payments under €20 are made with banknotes or coins. According to official data, Austrians have on average €102 euros in cash on them a day..?
This preference has given rise to a political battle. In 2023, Chancellor Karl Nehammer promised to enshrine in the Constitution the “right to pay in cash,” responding to a campaign initiated initially by the FPÖ party. Nehammer presented a three-point plan: include the right to cash in the Constitution, guarantee that it is always possible to pay with banknotes and coins, and oblige the National Bank to maintain a cash distribution network accessible to all citizens.
However, that promise has remained unkept for now. The government organized roundtables with the banking sector and industry, but no constitutional reform has materialized. Meanwhile, measures such as those of Oberbank are, in practice, undermining that right.
The opposition accuses Nehammer of inconsistency. Social Democrat Philip Kucher quipped that the “right to cash” is useless if there isn’t a single ATM left in the country.” The FPÖ itself, which had driven the debate from the outset, denounced that the chancellor appropriated its proposal without any real intention of implementing it. The conservatives took credit for the idea only to let it die.
Beyond the partisan struggle, the episode fuels growing concern among European citizens that the reduction of access to cash is not the result of technological modernization but a deliberate step toward a system of total control based on traceable digital payments—a horizon in which financial privacy would be subordinated to the decisions of banks and governments.
Even the President of the European Central Bank, Christine Lagarde, has repeatedly assured that both forms of payment will remain. Banks, however, apparently don’t think so.Picture:
