The number of banknotes issued by the Bank of Estonia last quarter was 20 percent smaller than in the previous quarter, with the total value of these notes similarly down 19 percent. The sharp but short increase in demand in the previous quarter has since faded out, with demand returning to the same level as in previous quarters, the Bank of Estonia said in a press release.

Some €141 million in banknotes were also returned to the central bank last quarter. The sorting process saw the destruction of 900,000 banknotes deemed unfit for circulation; the rest were sent back into circulation.

In the second quarter of 2022, the Bank of Estonia also issued €2.9 million of coins into circulation, and €1.3 million of coins were returned. Most issued were one- and two-cent coins, which accounted for 44 percent of all new coins issued. Coins can be paid into bank accounts via coin machines at 16 locations across Estonia.

Last quarter saw a total of 6.6 million cash withdrawals from ATMs across Estonia, valuing a combined more than €1.06 billion. While the number of transactions remained steady, the amount of cash withdrawn from ATMs had increased 14 percent on year.

A total of €351.1 million in cash was deposited in ATMs last quarter, 8.8 percent more than in the second quarter last year.

As of last quarter, there were 666 ATMs located in Estonia, 250 of which accept cash deposits as well. Alongside ATMs, cash transactions are still available at 27 bank branches.

Another some 800 places across Estonia provide cash withdrawals as well in cooperation with Swedbank, including Coop, Grossi Toidukaubad, Meie Toidukabad and Aldar Market grocery stores and supermarkets as well as Olerex and Terminal Oil gas stations.

Kroons for euros

The Bank of Estonia also continues to exchange Estonian kroons (EEK) banknotes and coins for euros, although interest in exchanging Estonia's previous national currency has been very low in recent years.

Last quarter, the central bank recorded 216 exchange transactions with kroons at a total value of €59,180.

To date, €44.1 million in Estonian kroons still have not been returned from circulation, including 28.4 million kroon banknotes worth €37.4 million and 319.4 million coins worth €6.7 million.

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