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Cyprus Leads The Eurozone In Card Payments As Digital Transactions Surge

by THEFUTURE.TEAM

July 24, 2026

Cyprus recorded the highest share of card payments in the euro area during the second half of 2025, with cards accounting for 75% of all cashless transactions, according to the latest payment statistics from the Central Bank of Cyprus. Credit transfers ranked second at 16%, highlighting the country’s continued shift toward digital payments.

Cards Dominate Everyday Spending

The report, published on Wednesday, found that card use in Cyprus continues to outpace the euro-area average. Cards accounted for 57% of cashless transactions across the bloc, compared with 21% for credit transfers.

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The central bank attributed the growth to the spread of contactless payments, expanding e-commerce and wider merchant acceptance.

Online Payments Carry Higher Values

The average in-store card payment in Cyprus was about €38, while the average online transaction reached €129. Across the euro area, the averages were €33 and €60, respectively.

Although physical purchases remained more common, Cyprus ranked among the euro area’s higher-value online card payment markets.

Credit Transfers Lead By Value

Credit transfers accounted for 84% of the total value of cashless payments, reflecting their use for higher-value transactions.

Cheques remained the second-largest payment instrument by value, mainly because of their continued use in business transactions and property deals.

The report also found that instant credit transfers have expanded rapidly in Cyprus, with adoption now exceeding the euro-area average following the implementation of the EU regulation.

Cross-Border Card Use Remains Strong

Domestic transactions represented around 70% of both the number and value of payments. Cards, however, recorded the highest level of cross-border activity, with international transactions accounting for 45% of card payments by volume and 56% by value.

Spending Patterns

Payments to payment institutions accounted for the largest share of card spending at €1.087 billion, followed by government services (€832 million) and grocery purchases (€745 million).

Spending on broker and securities dealer services more than doubled over the past three years, reflecting increased investment-related card use and the strong presence of Forex and CFD firms in Cyprus.

Contactless Payments And ATMs

More than 73% of ATMs in Cyprus support contactless transactions, well above the euro-area average of 38%.

Although the number of ATMs has fallen by around 13% over the past five years, cash withdrawals remained steady at about €2.6 billion in the second half of 2025. The average withdrawal reached a record high as consumers made fewer but larger withdrawals, while counter withdrawals continued to decline.

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Only 1% Of Cyprus Farms Use Precision Farming Technologies

Cyprus remains one of the European Union’s least digitised agricultural economies, with just 1% of farms using precision farming technologies in 2023, according to Eurostat.

The findings come as the EU continues to encourage the adoption of digital tools aimed at improving agricultural productivity, efficiency and sustainability.

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Internet Access Expands, But Digital Uptake Lags

Internet access has improved across the bloc, although adoption remains uneven. Eurostat found that 43% of EU farms had internet access in 2023, with northern and central European countries leading the way.

Denmark, Germany, Slovakia, Latvia, the Czech Republic and Austria all reported internet access rates above 90%.

Greater connectivity, however, has not translated into widespread digital adoption. Farm management information systems, which help farmers manage day-to-day operations, were used by only about 11% of EU farms. France was a notable exception, with around 60% of farms using the technology.

Precision Farming Concentrated In Larger Operations

Robotics adoption also remained relatively limited, with only about 7% of EU farms using robotic technologies. Overall, around 18% of farms with utilised agricultural area employed at least one precision farming technology or practice in 2023.

These included robotics for plant protection, band spraying, variable-rate application, precision crop monitoring and soil analysis. Despite representing fewer than one in five farms, these holdings accounted for around 44% of the EU’s utilised agricultural area.

The figures suggest that precision farming remains concentrated among larger agricultural businesses, where investment in digital technologies is typically easier to support.

Cyprus Lags Behind EU Leaders

Luxembourg, Finland and Estonia recorded the highest shares of utilised agricultural area managed by farms using precision farming technologies, each exceeding 75%.

At the other end of the ranking, Cyprus recorded just 1%, while Greece and Romania reported between 10% and 15%. The results indicate that Cyprus remains at an early stage of digital adoption in agriculture, even as precision farming becomes more widespread across parts of the European Union.