The year-end balance of banknotes in circulation in Japan is estimated to be around ¥124.1 trillion in 2024, falling for the second straight year, according to Bank of Japan data released Monday.
A stack of ¥10,000 bills equivalent to that value would be 1,240 kilometers high — or about 328 times higher than 3,776-meter Mount Fuji, the highest mountain in the country.
The balance of banknotes in circulation is the total value of banknotes held at homes, in corporate vaults and elsewhere.
The drop resulted from people increasingly opting for cashless payments, although the country’s new bank notes attracted demand since their introduction in July 2024.
The year-end balance declined in 2023 for the first time in 14 years amid the growing spread of cashless payment services.