In no other eurozone country is it more difficult to find a cash machine cash than here in Belgium. That’s according to results of a study carried out by the European Central Bank (ECB). Belgium is a long way behind the 2 other poor performers, Spain and The Netherlands when it comes to being able to find a cash dispenser.
Need cash? According to ECB survey, there are far too few cash machines in Belgium
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The survey reveals that 23% of Belgians find it either quite or very difficult to find a cash machine. The figure is much higher that in the other two poorest performers in the ranking of the 20 eurozone countries, Spain and The Netherlands.
In recent years many branches of high street banks have closed. Quite often these had one or more ATM machines. Meanwhile a joint venture by the 4 biggest banks in Belgium to roll out a network of generic ATMs has suffered delays in part due to difficulties in finding suitable premises to house the new cash machines. Consequently, many people have to either travel some distance or go out of their way every time they need to withdraw some cash.
Cash remains a popular means of payment in Belgium. Although the majority (almost 60%) of transactions in shops are by card, 4 out of 10 transactions are in cash. Belgians very rarely pay using payment apps such as Payconiq. Only around 3% of payments in Belgium are made using payment apps.