500 euro notes are no longer welcome in a Cologne Edeka branch. A debate breaks out on Reddit about the decision - but there is a simple reason.
Cologne – Most people now use a debit or credit card at the supermarket checkout, especially when making large purchases. But there are also those who prefer to pay in the traditional way with coins and banknotes. However, this is not possible indefinitely in an Edeka market in Cologne, as a notice shows.
Cologne Edeka branch prohibits payments with 500 euro notes
A Reddit user shared a photo of a notice from the Edeka Center Engels in the Marsdorf district of Cologne in the subreddit “But please laminate”. The notice announced: “From now on we will no longer accept 500 euro notes,” and was signed by the center. The post creator titled his post “People who can only pay €500 are excluded (...) sad” – probably with a wink.
The post attracted a lot of attention on Reddit. Since it was posted three days ago, it has received nearly 450 thumbs-up reactions and been commented on over a hundred times (as of April 17). Some users defended the Cologne Edeka Center notice.
One of them clarifies: “Issuance was stopped 5 years ago, every note that passes through a bank is confiscated. Anyone who now pays with €500 notes is doing so purely with the intention of flexing, is a counterfeiter or is simply stupid (because they apparently hoard large sums of cash at home).” Another user pointed out that €500 notes “at all “no longer printed”. “For the same reason why this Edeka doesn’t accept any more. Curb counterfeit money,” he added.
500 euro notes have been withdrawn from payment transactions for several years
In fact, on May 4, 2016, the Council of the European Central Bank (ECB) decided to stop the production and issuance of 500 euro banknotes at the end of 2018. As the Deutsche Bundesbank announces on its homepage, there will no longer be a 500 euro banknote in the European series of euro banknotes. The last 500 euro banknotes were issued by the Deutsche Bundesbank and the Austrian National Bank on April 26, 2019. They are now almost considered rarities.
Another user argued against the theory that payments with 500 euro notes promote the trade in counterfeit money: “Supermarkets often check all notes with an electronic device to see whether they are genuine, that is a pretextual argument. The bills are just a little more inconvenient when it comes to making change,” he explained.
Reddit users ironically criticize the supermarket's ban on 500 euro bills
Another Reddit user ironically expressed his regret that payments with 500 euro notes are no longer possible in the Cologne Edeka branch: “Now I can no longer Flex my 69ct Paulaner Spezi with a 500 euro note pay and rub it in everyone’s face,” he wrote. The fact that he can no longer watch the cashier counting the remaining 499.31 euros destroys his ego.
Another user pointed out that large bills often cause problems for cashiers because they require a large portion of the cash in hand for change. “Going to get change is easier said than done, because it usually involves a time-consuming process (leaving the cash register, calling a supervisor to get access to the safe, and so on). And many businesses simply don’t have that time,” he emphasized.
Other supermarket rules are also causing a lot of discussion: One branch asks its customers to hand in their backpacks at the checkout. A bakery customer, on the other hand, is surprised when he sees a notice.
(fh)