The Austrian bank gave up cash. ATMs and money disappear

The Austrian Oberbank stopped cash service in his facilities in Germany: he dismantled ATMs and closed the cash register. Customers are to use ATMs of other networks and payments at the ticket offices in stores. The change was implemented from the end of August and communicated at the beginning of September 2025.

Oberbank – a regional bank based in Linz – confirmed in conversations with the local press that in German institutions he completely completed cash service. “Not only is no longer possible payments and payments at the window – there are no ATMs,” quotes the position of the press office of the daily Süddeutsche Zeitung. The bank emphasizes that in Germany it focuses on companies and private banking, and customers can obtain cash outside the facilities.

The change caused a discussion in German nationwide and tabloid media, which pointed out that Oberbank belongs to the first institutions in the country completely giving up cash service in its branch network. At the same time, customers are sent to alternative channels – ATMs of other networks and payments at cash registers (so -called cashback).

The decision does not apply to Austria, where the bank also has its branches. The bank spokeswoman in an interview with the Austrian regional media stated that in the parent country a universal model – with cash support – remains unchanged.

Limiting cash in bank branches is part of a broader trend of decrease in the use of banknotes and coins in everyday payments and transferring simple operations to digital channels. In Germany, however, there is still a dispute over the pace and scale of this process – critics pay attention to the needs of less digitally experts and the aspect of transaction privacy. The case of oberbank can become a test for other smaller branches.

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