The spread of mobile technology hasn't wiped out the need for new banknotes yet.
The European Central Bank issued a new 50-euros banknote April 4 across 19 countries in the euro zone, the fourth new bill for consumers in what is termed the Europa series and includes euro denominations of 5, 10 and 20.
Citing a central bank study of more than 65,000 consumers from late 2015 to July of 2016, European Central Bank president Mario Draghi said more than three-quarters of all eurozone payments at the point of sale are still made in cash.
Draghi made his remarks at a speech in Frankfurt, Germany on April 4 at an event marking the launch of the new banknote. In terms of transaction volume, consumers use cash in slightly more than half of all transactions, Draghi said.
In the wake of various financial and political unrest in Europe, Draghi pointed to the euro as "something we all have in common … it's a tangible symbol of European unity."
A euro banknote was a reminder of the "deep integration that Europe has attained," making it the most common symbol of European identity for euro area citizens after democracy and freedom, he added.
The central bank plans to issue new 100-euros and 200-euros bills featuring improved security against counterfeiting at the beginning of 2019.
The bank considers the 50-euro banknote as the mostly widely used denomination, with more than 9 billion in circulation or 46% of all euro banknotes.
