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The decision to discontinue physical letter delivery follows PostNord’s report of an operating loss of 428 million kroner (€57 million) last year and a drop of more than 90% in the volume of physical letters handled since 2000.

Andreas Brethvad, the company’s director of public relations and communications, said: “PostNord Denmark has a long history, and letters have been an important part of it, but as Denmark is one of the world’s most digitalized countries, most Danes no longer send physical letters.”

However, Danish law guarantees citizens the right to send and receive physical letters. Therefore, as PostNord will no longer provide this service, the parcel and delivery company Dao will step in. From January, Danes wishing to send letters domestically or abroad will have to hand them in at the private company’s branches.

PostNord’s decision to halt physical mail delivery will result in the loss of 1,500 jobs. It also marks the end of 1,500 red post boxes across Denmark.

Brethvad noted that PostNord is aware that post boxes are an iconic part of Denmark’s heritage. Earlier this month, 1,000 were sold in a private sale, and a further 200 will be auctioned in January; all proceeds will be donated to charities supporting children affected by crises worldwide.