For 20 years now, euro banknotes and coins have been part of the everyday lives of people in Germany and the euro area. To mark the anniversary, the Bundesbank met both with interested members of the public and with expert audiences on various occasions in 2022. The programme culminated in an anniversary ceremony at the end of the year.

This publication provides information about the organisation and tasks of the Regional Office in Bavaria.

Scientific study on the expectations of firms in Germany

Bundesbank President Joachim Nagel is expecting to see a further decline in the use of banknotes and coins. Even so, cash is deeply embedded in our everyday lives because of its unique characteristics, he said in a video message at the Bundesbank’s cash symposium in Berlin. Bundesbank Executive Board member Burkhard Balz stressed that cash still has a valid role to play even as payments become increasingly electronic.

Germany’s current account recorded a surplus of €16.6 billion in August 2023, down €2.2 billion on the previous month’s level. While the balance in invisible current transactions, which comprise services as well as primary and secondary income, moved into positive territory, there was a sharper decline in the surplus in the goods account.

Germany’s current account posted a surplus of €18.7 billion in July 2023, down €9.7 billion on the previous month’s level. This decrease was due to a narrowing of the surplus in the goods account and a depletion of that in invisible current transactions, which comprise services as well as primary and secondary income.