Customers have made an overwhelming shift to digital, with 98.9 per cent of total banking transactions made online and via apps last year, according to the Australian Banking Association.
ABA research also showed that in-person branch transactions fell 46 per cent in the last financial year.
The Reserve Bank of Australia’s latest consumer payments survey released this month also found Australians are using cash less frequently in day-to-day transactions, with only about 13 per cent of payments made using cash last year — compared to about 70 per cent of payments in 2007.
Despite this shift, community advocates are concerned that stopping over-the-counter cash transactions will exclude people who may rely on them.
“Senior citizens, new migrants, people who are disabled, they do need face-to-face help, there’s a danger here of excluding some elements of our society,” Swinburne University technology professor Steve Worthington told 7NEWS earlier.
With cashless society concerns a hot topic once again, the big branches remain adamant that their branches without over-the-counter transactions are not cashless.
Customers at affected branches can access cash through the onsite SmartATMs, with staff available to assist in using the machines.
“At ANZ, we have seen in-branch transactions fall 50 per cent over the past five years, with just one per cent of transactions now done over the counter and 96 per cent conducted digitally,” a spokesperson told 7NEWS.com.au.
“At these branches, cash and cheque deposits and cash withdrawals can continue to be made by using our SmartATM and coin deposit machines, and we have staff on hand to help customers to use them.”
Commonwealth Bank’s specialist centres in Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney also offer ATMs where customers can withdraw and deposit money through the bank’s app using cardless cash, their card, or account details.
The “very small number” of new centres offer general customer assistance and help with home loans, business loans and saving goals.
NAB customers can also withdraw and deposit cash at all branches, with most also offering ATMs.
7NEWS.com.au understands the bank has a small number of expert centres, similar to Commonwealth’s specialist centres, that offer support for services such as home loans, refinancing or opening new accounts.
While the expert centres do not offer over-the-counter transactions, they are equipped with smartATMs which customers can use to withdraw and deposit cash.
Customers can also withdraw cash from more than 3,400 Australia Post outlets nationwide via Bank@Post.
7NEWS.com.au understands all Westpac branches offer over-the-counter cash services.
A Labrador visiting from Sydney has managed to conduct his own self-guided tour of Melbourne’s western suburbs after jumping on a Metro train without his owner.
A Labrador visiting from Sydney has managed to conduct his own self-guided tour of Melbourne’s western suburbs after jumping on a Metro train without his owner.
Cash use has been declining for years, but cash isn't close to going away. In 2022, there were a staggering 70 billion cash transactions, making it the third-most-common payment method.
Banks need to straddle the cash and digital worlds.
Financial institutions would undoubtedly benefit from a cashless society. They could continue earning transaction fees and could do away with ATMs and their constant need for service.
Londoners are moving away from cash faster than the rest of the country, according to new data. Figures from Link, the firm behind the majority of the UK's cash machine network, shows the capital's residents and workers are taking out £500m less every month from machines compared to pre-pandemic levels.
The US is moving toward cashless payments, with a substantial increase in the use of mobile wallet apps and contactless cards. A report from the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco found that payments made using cash accounted for just 18% of all US payments in 2022.
Why Eliminate Cash? Cash can be used in criminal activities such as money laundering and tax evasion because it is difficult to trace. Digital transactions or electronic money create an audit trail for law enforcement and financial institutions and can aid governments in economic policymaking.
Physical currency isn't becoming obsolete any time soon, so it's important to weigh up your options before deciding to go fully cashless in 2024. Ensuring you can accept some cashless payments though, is essential to keeping with today's trends and customer expectations.
So far, the US is still in an exploratory phase with the Biden administration announcing an executive order in 2022 that led to further research into digital currencies.
A cashless society offers a range of benefits such as convenience, transparency and stability. However, there are concerns about financial exclusion , privacy and security. It has been suggested that disadvantaged groups are most likely to be disproportionately affected by the transition away from cash.
The downsides of going cashless include less privacy, greater exposure to hacking, technological dependency, magnifying economic inequality, and more. Credit and debit cards, electronic payment apps, mobile payment services, and virtual currencies in use today could pave the way to a fully cashless society.
Making cash payments is time-consuming for customers as well as businesses. With cashless payments, customers can simply swipe their cards, enter a PIN, or use a mobile payment app to complete a transaction. Businesses can receive funds in their account much faster by eliminating the long payment processes.
Keeping too much of your money in savings could mean missing out on the chance to earn higher returns elsewhere. It's also important to keep FDIC limits in mind. Anything over $250,000 in savings may not be protected in the rare event that your bank fails.
Pew Research shows that in a typical week, 41% of Americans make absolutely zero purchases using cash. That's not all that surprising though. It makes sense, right? A lot of us swipe our debit cards to pay for everything and have wallets stuffed to the brim with receipts, gift cards and gum wrappers—anything but cash.
In short, if you have less than $250,000 in your account at an FDIC-insured US bank, then you almost certainly have nothing to worry about. Each deposit account owner will be insured up to $250,000 — so, for example, if you have a joint account with your spouse, your money will be insured up to $500,000.
Physical currency isn't becoming obsolete any time soon, so it's important to weigh up your options before deciding to go fully cashless in 2024. Ensuring you can accept some cashless payments though, is essential to keeping with today's trends and customer expectations.
Mobile Wallet Apps Get a Boost from NFC-Enabled ATMs
Last week, Chase, one of the largest banks in the US, announced that its customers no longer need a physical debit card as the financial giant has rolled out near-field communications (NFC) to most of its 16,000 automated teller machines in its US network.
You can still pull out cash from the bank and stuff your grocery envelopes with it or even slip a few dollars under your kid's pillow for their lost tooth. Cash is still alive and well, and no pandemic can take it down.
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