EU wants to ban high cash payments, financial market commissioner states

EU financial market commissioner Mairead McGuinness has announced a future push to ban payments of over EUR 10,000 in cash.

According to the Süddeutsche Zeitung, the Commission intends to present the associated package against money laundering and terrorist financing in July 2021. In addition, the financial market commissioner wants to promote the establishment of an EU authority to fight money laundering and terrorist financing with the help of the member states.

The interview stated that, especially in Austria and Germany, many people prefer to pay anonymously with cash. Unlike in other EU countries, Germany still enables cash payments in unlimited amounts. For payments above EUR 10,000 the identity of the person paying must be disclosed. However, according to the EU Commission, cash is still the ‘instrument of choice for criminals’, which was also a reason for the abolishment of EUR 500 bills in 2019.