Several European countries are rushing to strengthen the resilience of their payment systems against any sabotage, striving to make card payments available to citizens even offline in case of internet outages.
As Bank of Finland board member Tuomas Valimaki revealed to Reuters, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and Estonia are all preparing their backup offline card payment solutions. Such systems are called to maintain the ordinary commercial activities without an internet connection, even in the face of potential sabotage.
The countries in question have solid reasons to develop such contingency plans. Offline payments have been on top of the agenda of the Swedish Riksbank and other central bank institutions in the Nordics and beyond for a while now. The regulators’ concerns are caused by geopolitical uncertainty, worsening security situation in Europe, and other potential impacts of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Bankers recall unexplained damage to critical undersea infrastructure in the Baltic Sea region, which some attributed to Russian sabotage, although the country’s officials denied their involvement. Valimaki pointed out that the war in Europe and the various forms of hybrid influence and interference surrounding it can bring out potential disruptions or severing of connections. He noted that payment systems could be among the primary targets for such influence because of their vital importance in daily life.
Additionally, European infrastructure managers have recently faced an unexpected power outage that disrupted Spain, Portugal, Andorra, and parts of southwestern France. The blackout left millions without electricity for up to 10 hours, affecting transportation, communications, and essential services. While this event is not linked to cybersecurity issues, it still questions the resilience of Europe’s ageing power infrastructure and telecommunications.
Valimaki explained that while the Bank of Finland contingency plans are still in development, offline payment solutions typically rely on payment terminals capable of encrypting and storing transaction data temporarily. When you tap or insert your chip card at the terminal, the terminal uses the card’s embedded cryptographic keys to verify if it’s genuine. Using an offline PIN or digital signature, the card itself approves your legitimacy as a cardholder without contacting the bank. The terminal encrypts and logs the transaction details (amount, card data, timestamp) in its internal memory. These transactions are held securely until an internet connection is re-established, at which point the data is transmitted for processing. Probably, the nation would resort to some technology of the kind.
Central banks in Norway and Denmark have already implemented offline electronic payment solutions. These systems are currently active but are being further refined to enhance reliability and security.
Sweden’s central bank plans to launch a fully operational offline payment system by July 1, 2026. It should allow local citizens to make card payments for essential goods during internet outages or significant disruptions that could last up to seven days, ensuring access to necessities even in challenging conditions.
The banking entities of Estonia have not commented on the issue yet. However, the so-called Baltic countries, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, are widely considered to be among the most vulnerable strategic locations when it comes to the hybrid war impact in Europe due to their geographical proximity to Russia and historical context. Therefore, they surely must have contingency plans in place.
These countries are highly digitalised too. As we know, Estonia is one of the global leaders in e-governance and digital infrastructure. While almost all government services are available online in this country within a convenient and unified system, any disruption or breach can cascade across services. Meanwhile, some of the underwater internet cables, recently cut in an act of alleged sabotage by a Russian vessel, connected Estonia to some of the other partner countries. Thus, the highly digital nation is taking all the precautions to maintain the stability of its financial and other systems in any emergency state.
