French still hide money at home
Money management survey finds 24% of people use secret hiding places instead of a savings account
A QUARTER of French people are hiding money in their house instead of putting it securely in a bank, a new study has found.
The poll by public opinion body Ifop found 24% of people were using secret hideaways at home - and 4% were keeping large amounts of cash there.
The research was commissioned by Wincor Nixdorf, a firm that develops banking systems and self-checkout machines in supermarkets.
It found the average person in France carries €37 with them in their wallet. Some 9% of the 1,005 respondents said they usually carry at least €100 on them - a figure rising to 20% of over-65s.
Cash was the most popular means of payment by some way - 95% of the 1,005 people questioned said they always had cash on them, with the rest saying they preferred to pay by card.
The survey also found nearly eight in ten people are against the idea of a €1 note, which is currently being considered by a parliamentary committee.
Puy-de-Dôme MP Louis Giscard d'Estaing, son of former French president Valéry, is campaigning for the new denomination of note which he said would be cheaper to produce and would improve the currency's image alongside the US dollar.
He also happens to be the Mayor of Chamalières, home of the Banque de France printing plant that would make the new notes if approved.
Martinan - Fotolia.com
