Europe · GDP rank #4
Germany
DE · EUR @ 1.1595/USD
The largest economy in Europe and the most cash-resilient. Cash still clears roughly half of consumer transactions by volume, the domestic girocard scheme dominates debit, and credit-card penetration is among the lowest in the G10. The slow shifts are real — SEPA Instant is finally free at most banks, Wero is building out — but a story of rapid card displacement is wrong for Germany in 2026.
Tab 05
Cross-border
Inbound and outbound remittance corridors, tourism flows, FX markup on retail cross-border, and the country's posture on stablecoin adoption. Corridor figures come from the World Bank RPW feed or the publishing central bank; both are cited when they disagree.
Remittance inflows
USD · 2023
Remittance outflows
USD · 2023
Inbound tourism spend
EUR · 2024
Outbound tourism spend
EUR · 2024
Avg. corridor cost
% · Q4 2024
Net sender
Top inbound corridors
- SwitzerlandUS$3.4B
via bank
Top outbound corridors
- TurkeyUS$3.7B
via MTO
- PolandUS$2.9B
via bank
- CroatiaUS$1.4B
via bank
Cross-border card
Card flow leaving and arriving
Cards issued domestically and used abroad reflect outbound consumer travel and cross-border e-commerce; volume acquired from abroad reflects inbound tourism and foreign online shoppers.
Issued volume spent abroad
EUR/year · 2024
Acquired volume from abroad
EUR/year · 2024
FX cost
What consumers pay above the interbank
Retail FX markup is the spread between the mid-market rate and the rate the consumer receives — the single largest friction point in small-ticket cross-border.
- FX regime
- euro-area member
- Reference
- Adopted euro 1999 / banknotes 2002
Source · Deutsche Bundesbank
Full reference
Remittances
Net Position: sender
Source: