Future of cash: ATM withdrawal numbers on the rise

A cash advocate is calling on banks to respond after surprise statistics emerged about just how much Aussies use physical dollars.

Cash could be making a revival, with surprising new data showing a spike in withdrawals at ATMs across the country.

The number of withdrawals from ATMs in Australia jumped 2.7 per cent between July and August, data released last week by the Reserve Bank of Australia revealed.

The news comes as banks continue to shut branches and ATMs, while more businesses jump on the cashless bandwagon.

Withdrawals from ATMs in Australia jumped 2.7 per cent between July and August. Picture; iStock

A senate inquiry examining bank closures across regional Australia heard last year over 2100 Aussie bank branches have closed across the country since 2017.

Cash advocate Jason Bryce from Cash Welcome is calling on banks to respond to demand and reopen ATMs.

“Banks continue to close down our access to cash but Australians are clearly looking for ATMs, travelling further to get cash and paying fees to access their money,” Mr Bryce said in a statement.

He argued cash use brings a number of benefits which are highly valued by consumers including privacy and reliability.

“Banks have no excuse for continuing to close branches and ATMs while Australians want and expect to be able to get cash.”

Cash advocate Jason Bryce is calling on banks to reopen ATMs. Picture: iStock

News of the spike in ATMs withdrawals was celebrated on the ‘Cash is King’ Facebook group, where many urged Aussies to “keep cash alive” and ditch digital payments.

“Everyone is sick of paying unnecessary fees,” one person wrote.

“Keep using cash, fight back with cash,” said another.

“Keep it up Australia – use it or lose it!,” another encouraged.

Westpac scraps cardless cash withdraws

It comes as one of Australia’s major banks scrapped cardless cash withdrawals last week, blaming declining physical cash use.

Westpac said customers will need a physical card to get cash as of 8pm last Friday.

Cardless cash entails a user creating a number in the banking app, and that pin is used at an ATM to get cash without a physical card – while other people can extract the cash using a code.

Westpac said the change was driven by more people using digital payments as opposed to spending cash.

“Over a 12-month period, we’ve seen a 21 per cent increase in mobile wallet transactions as more customers choose the speed, security and convenience of digital banking,” a spokesperson said.

“At the same time, there has been a decline in cardless cash withdrawals.”

Westpac has scrapped cardless cash withdrawals. Picture: Brendon Thorne/Getty

Westpac has 7000 ATMs across the country and 500 branches.

People can still deposit cash without a card. Westpac’s move comes at a time when many people do not usually have their wallet with them, using digital wallets to pay for everyday expenses.

In its annual results in August, Commonwealth Bank said it had cut the number of ATMs from 3542 to 1916 machines in the space of five years.

But Australia’s biggest bank spent $410m in the past financial year providing “cash services” across the country.

Aussies still relying on cash

While only 13 per cent of payments are made with cash, a report released earlier this year found one quarter of Aussies still rely on cash when buying from small businesses.

The survey by small business accounting outfit Xero found 25 per cent of Australian shoppers rely on cash and cheques when making a purchase.

41 per cent of consumers rarely use cash or cheques, and only do so when a business asks for it.

25 per cent of Australian shoppers still rely on cash and cheques when making a purchase, a report found. Picture: iStock

Xero’s Australian sales director Theo Konstantas said small businesses and customers were disconnected over how to pay.

Businesses were hesitant to adopt Apple Pay and Google Pay, and even traditional debit and credit facilities, he said.

“Aussie consumers are increasingly embracing digital payment methods, particularly younger generations.

“However, small businesses don’t seem to be meeting their customers where they are.”

Only 55 per cent of Australian small businesses offer debit or credit as a way for customers to pay.

More than two-thirds (68 per cent) of small businesses want bank transfers, and cash is the second most common payment method preferred by the proprietor, at 59 per cent.

– With NCA NewsWire