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Hazard · Technical

Payment System Failure

Pay with cash – it is the proven fallback when power or network fails. Keep a reserve in small denominations at home for this purpose. More than half (over 50 percent) of the population experienced a technical payment disruption within a year in 2024. Stay informed via FM radio; this is preparedness, not investment advice.

Swiss daily life increasingly depends on digital payments: debit and credit cards, payment apps like TWINT, and ATMs all require electricity and network access. Behind the scenes, the Swiss Interbank Clearing system (SIC) – operated by SIX Clearing AG on behalf of the Swiss National Bank – processes payment traffic; it is classified as systemically important financial market infrastructure under SNB supervision. If any of these layers fails, digital payment is no longer possible.

Such disruptions are real and frequent: in the SNB's 2024 payment methods survey, over half of respondents experienced a technical payment glitch within a year – most often with debit cards and payment apps. How critical a power outage can become was demonstrated by the Iberian blackout on April 28, 2025: physical card payment volume dropped about 41 percent, national e-commerce fell about 54 percent – while already-available cash continued to work, but ATMs remained offline.

Prevention is simple and proven: maintain a cash reserve in small denominations at home. Cash is the proven fallback when cards and apps fail – 98 percent are satisfied with cash acceptance. Cash will not be abolished: 95 percent want to keep it, and the March 8, 2026 vote anchored cash supply by the SNB in the Constitution. This is preparedness and awareness – not investment advice.

Risk rating

Risk · High (level 4 of 5)

Likelihood: High · Impact: Medium → Overall risk: High.

Risk matrix: likelihood runs vertically (top = high), impact runs horizontally (right = high). The highlighted cell shows this hazard's rating.
Impact
Low Medium High
High This hazard's rating
Medium
Low

Legend: Low (green) · Medium (yellow) · High (red). Overall risk is likelihood multiplied by impact.

During power outages or cyberattacks, cards, TWINT, and ATMs fail – cash is then the only reliable payment method and serves as the proven fallback.

Immediate measures

  • Keep a cash reserve in small denominations on hand
  • Pay in cash rather than card/app if payment systems fail
  • Seek official information via FM/DAB+ radio

Warning signs

  • Payment terminal or TWINT repeatedly reports errors or "no connection"
  • Power outage in your area – digital payments and ATMs go down as well
  • BACS warnings or media reports of cyberattacks on banks or payment providers
  • Simultaneous failure of online banking, card payments, and ATMs (sign of a system-wide outage)
  • Outage announcements on the SIX system status page or your provider's site

Before · During · After

Before

  • Store cash in small denominations at home
  • Do not have all your money available exclusively in digital form
  • Write down important account and emergency numbers on paper
  • Know that ATMs also fail during power outages

During

  • Stay calm – disruptions are usually regional and time-limited
  • Pay with available cash; try card payment again later
  • Postpone larger, non-urgent payments
  • Follow official announcements via radio

After

  • Replenish your cash reserve
  • Check account transactions for double charges from interrupted payments
  • Expect phishing waves exploiting the disruption

This really happened

  1. 2025 Iberian Blackout

    During the widespread power outage on the Iberian Peninsula on April 28, 2025, physical card payment volume dropped about 41 percent and national e-commerce fell about 54 percent. Available cash continued to work while ATMs remained offline for roughly 22 hours – concrete evidence that cash is the fallback, but ATMs don't function in a blackout.

    Source

  2. 2026 "Cash Is Freedom" Vote

    On March 8, 2026, voters rejected the "Cash Is Freedom" initiative with 54.42 percent "no" but approved the direct counter-proposal with 73.42 percent "yes". This anchors in Article 99 of the Federal Constitution that the Swiss currency is the franc and the SNB guarantees cash supply.

    Source

Frequently asked questions

Will cash be abolished in Switzerland?

No. In surveys, roughly 95 percent of the population wants to keep cash. The March 8, 2026 vote also anchored in the Constitution that the Swiss National Bank guarantees cash supply – a retail central bank digital currency ("digital franc for everyone") is not planned.

Do card payments and TWINT always work?

No. In the SNB's 2024 payment methods survey, more than half of respondents experienced a technical payment disruption within a year. During a power outage, card and app payments as well as ATMs fail because they all depend on electricity and network access.

How much cash should I keep at home?

Switzerland (FONES, "Practical Advice – Emergency Supplies") recommends "some cash" in small denominations, without a fixed amount. As a rough guideline, some EU authorities suggest about 70 to 100 euros per person or enough for roughly 72 hours of basic needs – these are foreign values, not Swiss requirements.

Why does cash help during a blackout?

Because already-available banknotes work independently of electricity and network. During the April 28, 2025 Iberian blackout, card payment volume fell about 41 percent and e-commerce about 54 percent, while cash continued to be accepted. Important: ATMs went offline – cash therefore must already be at home.

Official sources