Years after leading the revolution towards a cash-free society, Sweden is now urging inhabitants to keep banknotes on hand in case of emergency.
Grocery shops and pharmacies will also be required to accept cash.
Many Swedes have not touched banknotes in years. Very few restaurants, shops or services accept cash and almost everything is paid for by card or various online services.
Even most bank branches no longer handle cash deposits or withdrawals, with customers referred to online banking services.
But earlier this month, the Swedish central bank recommended that households keep 1,000 kronor (around €93) in cash on hand per adult to cover a week's purchases of essential goods.
In addition, it urged Swedes to make sure they had several payment methods at their disposal, including cash, credit cards and mobile phone-based internet payment services, "in case of temporary disruptions, crisis, or in the worst case, war".
And today, the government submitted a bill to parliament that would require grocery shops and pharmacies to accept cash.
It would also require that banks make it possible for customers to deposit cash and for stores and companies to have access to services for depositing their daily cash takings.
Sweden's transition to a cash-free society has gone quickly and smoothly for the most part, though there has been some opposition, primarily from elderly people uncomfortable with online banking.
The amount of cash in circulation in the Scandinavian country has been almost halved since 2008, according to official statistics.
"The digitalisation of society has gone very quickly and created many opportunities, but has also entailed certain risks," Public Administration Minister Erik Slottner said in a statement.
"A major risk is that digital exclusion is spreading, not least among the elderly," he said, adding that requiring grocery shops and pharmacies to accept cash was "important for strengthening our preparedness".
Sweden has been beefing up its civil preparedness and so-called "total defence" measures since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
