Alternative Payments to Cash are on the Rise in Hungary

More than a third of the Hungarian population has been using less cash since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a recent representative poll conducted by Pulzus Kutató for Napi.hu.

One in six people switched to another payment solution because of the coronavirus, but most have replaced traditional payments because of new services, including the instant payment system. In villages and among those with a basic education, however, there is a strong belief that only cash is certain.

The poll suggest that the call by shops and epidemiologists to use electronic payment methods during the epidemic because they are safer than handling cash was effective. The survey asked whether the population used more or less cash at the time of the emergency. The results showed that although two-fifths of the population did not change their cash use habits, and 16% used even more cash than before, the use of cash decreased by 38%.

16% of the respondents stated that they use less cash because they also protect themselves from the coronavirus, i.e. for more than one in six Hungarian citizens, this was the motivating factor that reduced the use of cash, which is also a great burden on the national economy. According to some calculations, the use of cash places an extra burden of HUF 450 billion a year on the budget. 22% of respondents said they use less cash because they chose new solutions instead.