Hungarians Keep a Lot of Domestic Currency in Cash

The MNB's statistical balance sheet for July is out: cash holdings have fallen, foreign claims and government deposits have risen, and the banking system is holding good reserves.

The average stock of cash in circulation continued to fall in July, according to fresh data from the National Bank of Hungary (MNB). There is HUF 19.6 billion less cash in circulation in Hungary than in the previous month. The figures show a steady decline since January and the lowest amount of currency in circulation since March last year. But even so, we are still talking about more than HUF 8,000 billion.

In eight years, the average stock of domestic cash has nearly doubled, not because more people are choosing cash over bank cards, but because of the deflation of money. An earlier survey showed how many of us use debit cards as opposed to cash. Currently, using a debit card is the most popular payment method in the country. At the same time, the popularity of cash is not lagging far behind: it remains the most popular payment method among Hungarians.