News in Brief

Cash Use Rises in Latvia

Latvijas Bank reported that in February 2023 non-cash payments made up 67% of transactions with cash responsible for the rest. This data came from a population survey carried out by SIA Latvijas Fakti. The average number of payments per person per week was at a historical high of 14.3, up from 12.8 a year earlier.

The use of smartphones for payment has risen from 13% in 2022 to 16% in 2023. In 2019 the figure was 4%.

Access to cash remains good. Satisfaction with the ability to withdraw cash is unchanged at 84%, and only 9% were dissatisfied.

When asked whether the one and two cent coins should be withdrawn, those for the idea fell from 51% a year earlier to 41%. 50% were against the idea.