Cash is still king for the majority of Europeans - including Britons - a study showed.
Some 62 per cent of Europeans, equivalent to 129 million adults, want to keep cash, according to a study by the European Security Transport Association (ESTA).
Those in the Netherlands, the UK and France were found to be most strongly in favour of retaining cash: 75 per cent, 74 per cent and 70 per cent respectively would not want to see it abolished, despite the rise of electronic payments.
The study, undertaken across eight Western European states, also found that 64 per cent of consumers believe that moves to reduce the use of cash in society would damage commercial and national life in their country.
Talks between banks and regulators on promoting electronic payments are under way in Brussels, although the push is not yet part of any proposed legislation.
Mike Bowen, spokesman for the ESTA, which represents cash industry logistics businesses throughout Europe, said it was "crucial" that consumers continued to have the option to pay for goods and services with cash, rather than "being forced to use purely electronic methods".
He continued: "Under pressure from the banks, the European Commission has previously supported a reduced role for cash in society, regardless of consumer sentiments."
He said that cash remained one of the cheapest types of financial transaction for consumers, although it could prove expensive for banks as they manage its flow around the economy.
Mr Bowen said a move away from cash would lead to increased social exclusion among less privileged consumers.
He added: "It [cash] is less open to fraud than electronic payment methods and provides billions of euros of revenue for national governments, which if removed, would lead to higher taxes for consumers across the European Union."
Germans were found to be most in favour of paying with cash, with 57 per cent preferring this payment method, compared to 36 per cent of Britons.
French consumers, meanwhile, were the biggest supporters of cheques, with 10 per cent preferring them, against just one per cent of Britons and Italians.
An estimated 400,000 Europeans said they preferred to barter rather than using conventional payment methods.
Taylor Nelson Sofres surveyed more than 1,000 adults in Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Sweden, the Netherlands and Belgium.