Lisbon, June 25, 2026 (Lusa) - Portugal, Spain, France and Sweden have formally established Denária Europa, the first European civil society platform dedicated to protecting and promoting citizens’ right to freely access and use physical cash.
Based in Brussels, the new platform aims to contribute to the European debate on the future of payments, advocating for the coexistence of digital means and cash within a system considered to be more balanced, inclusive and resilient, according to a statement issued on Wednesday.
Denária Europa brings together Denária Portugal, Plataforma Denaria from Spain, Droit au Cash from France, and Kontantupproret from Sweden, and its mission is to be “a European civil society confederation created to protect and promote the right of European citizens to freely access and use cash”.
Pedro da Cunha, from Denária Portugal, is part of the board of Denária Europa, which includes representatives from the four founding countries and will be chaired by Björn Eriksson, a representative of the Swedish platform.
According to the same press release, the platform’s creation aims to give a European dimension to the defence of citizens’ freedom of choice against a backdrop of increasing digitalisation of payments and a reduction in infrastructure providing access to physical cash.
Denária Europa argues that cash continues to play an essential role in financial inclusion, citizens’ privacy and the security of the payment system, particularly in emergencies or when digital payment methods fail.
The platform cites data from the European Central Bank (ECB) showing that the proportion of in-person payments made in cash in the euro area fell from 72% in 2019 to 52% in 2024.
Despite this decline in usage, “62% of euro area citizens consider it important or very important to retain the option to pay in cash, a figure that rose by two percentage points between 2022 and 2024”, according to the same study cited by the new confederation.
Denária Europa intends to publish reports and barometers on access to, acceptance of and use of cash, to promote dialogue with European institutions, regulators and central banks, and to develop “campaigns that help citizens – particularly the most vulnerable – to understand the implications of the transformation of the payments ecosystem”.
The organisation emphasises that it is not opposed to digital innovation, but rather advocates “the coexistence of all means of payment and the right of every citizen to choose freely how they wish to pay”.
“The creation of this confederation is an important step towards giving a European dimension to a concern that is also a national one: guaranteeing citizens’ freedom of choice and access to cash, which has unique attributes: it is the most democratic means of payment, it is inclusive, it never fails, it acts as a store of value, it is immune to cybercrime and it helps people keep track of their daily spending”, says Pedro da Cunha, quoted in the same press release.
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