DotEcon was commissioned by MasterCard Europe to review a recent ECB study on “Social and Private Costs of Retail Payment Instruments”.
The ECB study provides a valuable attempt at collecting data on the usage and costs of different payment systems in thirteen EU member states. However, its result need to be interpreted with caution. The study clearly show that it is impossible to put a simple figure on what it costs to make a payment. It shows that scale economies are key, and suggests that substantial cost savings could be achieved by moving from cash payments to cashless payments.
The full review of the study is available here.