say, in the field of machine learning, for example one in supervised and one in unsupervised learning. cooperation with colleagues, each one bringing in “ expert knowledge ” at a particular stage of the project, creates a process of mutual learning with the potential to increase productivity. reaping synergies along the production process is another potential benefit of technological progress. increases in quantities of data, particularly if collected and stored according to well - defined information models, allow for more standardized procedures. certain tasks can be centralized along the production chain. the “ statistical value chain ” changes : the diverse requirements and objectives that statistics faces are not treated in isolation anymore. rather, uniform concepts of data collection, processing and dissemination make it possible that each of these heterogeneous needs is dealt with by a specialized unit dedicated to one step of the production chain. what are the implications for the production of statistics? making better use of ( existing ) data traditionally, central banks collect a large number of datasets which are then stored in different business areas. in the bundesbank, for example, bank - level data are collected by the statistics department and the banking supervision department, information on payments transactions are collected by the payments system department, and additional micro - data are available in the markets department. these data contain potentially useful information for analytical policy work in different business areas. however, combining the data has traditionally not been feasible due to legal restrictions because of confidentiality requirements or data protection rules. very practically, company identifiers or software tools often differed. the fixed costs of using these data have, therefore, been high, which severely constrained their use in day - to - day seite 6 von 18 deutsche bundesbank, directorate general communications wilhelm - epstein - strasse 14, 60431 frankfurt am main, germany, tel : + 49 ( 0 ) 69 9566 3511 or 3512, fax : + 49 ( 0 ) 69 9566 3077 presse @ bundesbank. de, www. bundesbank. de reproduction permitted only if source is stated. policy work. merging different micro - level datasets requires, for example, identifiers, cumbersome matching algorithms and / or decisions to be taken for matching reporting entities. studies using micro data are often not readily comparable because analysts made different choices when compiling datasets. as a result, existing micro data have often not been used efficiently in the past for policy work. in order

from existence, at least as far as transactions are concerned. none of us have a crystal ball to tell us how the match will end. but we can look at existing 1 / 4 bis central bankers'speeches evidence. in my brief remarks this evening, let us turn to the hypothetical question : how would the coin toss change, if one of the sides were to vanish? supply and demand factors behind cash usage ladies and gentlemen, in germany, cash remains as popular among private households as ever. if asked directly, 88 % of german households would be in favour of keeping the option of using cash for everyday transactions. 1 this generally “ cash - loving ” attitude is reflected in the data on actual cash usage. we know from our own analysis that 74 % of all point - of - sale transactions are made using banknotes and coins. 2 but this number is declining – albeit gradually and from a high level by international standards. in some countries, cash usage is already significantly lower than in germany. in principle, the declining use of cash could be driven by weakening demand. this could occur if alternative means of payment were to appeal more in relative terms to private households. we as central bankers take a neutral stance towards such a consumer - driven process. however, the declining usage of cash could also be driven by a weakening supply as the existing cash infrastructure erodes. such adjustments could stem from both private and public entities and could hamper the adequate provision of cash. the reasons for this may be complex, yet the implications would be straightforward : households would have to adjust, too. once obtaining cash simply becomes “ too cumbersome ”, switching to electronic alternatives is the rational decision, but it means less choice and it may pose several social challenges : think of ensuring financial inclusion in an ageing population. think of providing a non - electronic alternative in times of political crisis or in the event of large - scale cyber attacks. any rational decision is preceded by a cost - benefit analysis. while we may see the benefits of different payment methods, we also need to understand their underlying cost structures. we looked in a recent study at the overall transaction costs of cash compared to debit and credit card payments in the german retail sector. 3 cash did turn out to be the most cost - efficient payment instrument for retailers when accounting for cost drivers such as cash handling, fees for card payments and payment infrastructure provision. but, looking ahead, several factors need to be understood better. to name just a few : how is