In Germany, criminals blow up ATMs. The media sees the reason in the Germans’ “obsession” with cash. Tomasz Wróblewski pointed out that the problem is not necessarily in the habits of our neighbours.
It is happening more and more in Germany blow up ATMs to steal money. The German Interior Ministry reported that there were 496 such attacks in the country in 2022. The thieves targeted devices in branches of Deutsche Bank and Santander.
They blow up ATMs
Investigators have determined that Dutch gangs formed by Moroccan immigrants are likely responsible for the crime wave in this area. Interestingly, in some media’s message, the source of the problem may not be so much the perpetrators as… cash.
Cash is king in Germany and many Germans prefer to use it instead of bank cards. There are 53,000 ATMs in the country, according to Reuters, and researchers believe that this, like Germany’s highways or highways, many of which have no speed limit, is why thieves are attacking the country.
Guilty thieves or cash?
The title of the text says that Germany is a country “obsessed” with cash. “That is why north-western Germany is the target of most of these attacks, and the state of North Rhine-Westphalia has been the victim of 47 incidents so far this year,” the Insider points out, citing the US agency Reuters.
“According to a 2021 study by the Deutsche Bundesbank, respondents in Germany used notes and coins to make 58 percent of payments for goods and services,” we read, further learning that in the United States, only 14 percent. of citizens use cash for most or all of their payments.
Wróblewski: Moroccans also like cash
Tomasz Wróblewski, president of the Warsaw Enterprise Institute, pointed out that the media’s translation is not entirely consistent.
“The wave of bombings is moving from west to east. From France and the Netherlands, gangs specializing in blowing up ATMs have moved to Germany. Last year, gangsters, mostly of Moroccan origin, blew up 496 ATMs. This year they are going for a record. 30 million euros have already been looted. How do the media explain that? … Germany is overly attached to cash.” But from this you can see that Moroccans do too,” he tweeted.
Source: Do Rzeczy
Roy Brown is a renowned economist and author at The Nation View. He has a deep understanding of the global economy and its intricacies. He writes about a wide range of economic topics, including monetary policy, fiscal policy, international trade, and labor markets.
