Bank of Israel: Cash usage is declining – and here's who pays the price

A review by the Bank of Israel's Currency Department published today shows that the share of users using a digital wallet at least once a week surged from 5% in 2019 to 47% in 2025, while weekly cash usage dropped from about 80% to about 48%. The Bank of Israel fears that a continued decline will reduce cash infrastructure, make it more expensive, and harm accessibility. About 70% of Israelis wish to continue using cash in the future.

The Currency Department of the Bank of Israel published a review today (Monday) showing that Israelis have adopted digital wallets at the expense of cash. The share of those paying with a digital wallet at least once a week surged from 5% in 2019 to 47% in 2025, while weekly cash usage dropped from about 80% to about 48%. The data is based on an online survey by the Rushink Institute for the bank among Hebrew speakers aged 16-74 connected to the internet. Those who increased their use of digital wallets noted that it came mainly at the expense of a physical credit card (50%) and only then at the expense of cash (26%). The total value of banknotes and coins held by the public and in bank vaults stands at about 134.7 billion shekels, but the growth rate moderated to about 2% per year in 2024 and 2025, compared to about 7% in 2021-2023. Cash remains central in small transactions: 63% of transactions up to 10 shekels are made in cash, compared to 25% of transactions over 500 shekels. In the Arab community, 75% of transaction value is in cash; in localities with a low socio-economic index, 57% compared to 14% in high-index localities; and in the Haredi community, 29% compared to 15% in the non-Haredi Jewish community. About 40% of respondents said that cash helps them control spending, and about 70% see it as a backup for technical failures. The Bank of Israel warns that a decline in regular use could reduce infrastructure, decrease accessibility, and make usage more expensive for the consumer.