New Zealand Will Launch Community Cash Trials in 2024

Preserve or Redesign the Cash CycleRepresents the various stages of the lifecycle of cash, from issuance by the central bank, circulation in the economy, to destruction by the central bank. More?

Many countries are seeing a decline in the use of cashMoney in physical form such as banknotes and coins. More for day-to-day transactions. This has reduced access to cash, as bank branches and ATMs have been closing. In turn, the cost of withdrawing and increasing cash has increased as the infrastructure and the volumes decline.

Some countries, including Sweden, the Netherlands, and Ireland, are adopting a legislative approach and are passing laws mandating that banks, or at least the large banks, ensure minimal access to cash. The arguments generally advanced by these governments are to ensure financial inclusionA process by which individuals and businesses can access appropriate, affordable, and timely financial products and services. These include banking, loan, equity, and insurance products. While it is recognised that not all individuals need or want financial services, the goal of financial inclusion is to remove all barriers, both supply side and demand side. Supply side barriers stem from financial institutions themselves. They often indicate poor financial infrastructure, and include lack of ne... More for those who struggle with digital payments and those who prefer to use cash to provide a more resilient paymentA transfer of funds which discharges an obligation on the part of a payer vis-à-vis a payee. More system, typically in the case of cyber-attacks or outages.

The Reserve BankSee Central bank. More of New Zealand (RBNZ) has adopted a different approach. Rather than preserve a cash infrastructure that has already been degraded, the RBNZ aims to redesign the cash cycle. In 2024, the bank will launch a range of cash trials in communities lacking a commercial bank branch or an ATM to test new ways for people and retailers to withdraw and deposit cash, including changeThis is the action by which certain banknotes and/or coins are exchanged for the same amount in banknotes/coins of a different face value, or unit value. See Exchange. More at little or no cost.

Expanding the Role of Merchants in the Cash Cycle

In a November 2022 speech, Karen Silk, RBNZ’s assistant governor, stressed the importance of “exploring policies that support merchants having an expanded role in cash distribution to augment the current and shrinking commercial bank-centric cash system.” Silk added: “This could include supporting merchants:

• to recycle cash at point-of-sale,
• by reimbursing them for cash-out services,
• by facilitating frequent, affordable cash delivery and collection for merchants,
• through consolidation within the cash system with the creation of utility entities.”

The pilots will trial four different types of solutions:

• RecyclingThe process of converting waste materials into new materials and objects. Banknotes are increasingly recycled after destruction, and the waste is often used for landfills, isolation material etc. Polymer notes are melted into pellets which are recycled into new products. Recycling is often incorrectly used instead of recirculation. See Recirculation. More cash hubs, with ATM-like devices for cash and coinA coin is a small, flat, round piece of metal alloy (or combination of metals) used primarily as legal tender. Issued by government, they are standardised in weight and composition and are produced at ‘mints’. More
• Non-recycling hubs, replenished by a CiT
• A collective cash service with a collective back office safeSecure container for storing money and valuables, with high resistance to breaking and entering. More used by multiple merchants
• An individual CIT service whereby merchants contract individually with a CiT.

The RBNZ will fund these trials.

New Zealand has seen a sharp decline in bank ATMs over the past decade, with numbers dropping from 2,552 in 2015 to 2,118 in 2022. Merchants have also increasingly needed help finding ways of depositing cash and obtaining change. This has increased costs for merchants, who, according to the RBNZ, bear 68% of the overall cash cost.

Te Moni Anamata – The Future of MoneyFrom the Latin word moneta, nickname that was given by Romans to the goddess Juno because there was a minting workshop next to her temple. Money is any item that is generally accepted as payment for goods and services and repayment of debts, such as taxes, in a particular region, country or socio-economic context. Its onset dates back to the origins of humanity and its physical representation has taken on very varied forms until the appearance of metal coins. The banknote, a typical representati... More

“We know that New Zealanders, particularly in rural areas, still often rely on cash and value the certainty and convenience it provides, including when electronic options aren’t available or are off-line as we saw for large parts of the country during Cyclone Gabrielle,” said Ian Woolford, Director of Money and Cash. “This research project recognises the important role of retailers in the cash system and will test ways of ensuring that cash remains easy to get, spend, give as change, and bank.”

  “We’ll be looking for 2 or 3 districts, ideally with a few communities with populations of less than 10,000 that have lost most or all bank-provided counterAutomatic device for the counting of banknotes or coins. More and cash services. We’ll work with these communities to confirm their cash servicing needs and what possible solutions to trial. We’ll also invite national stakeholder groups to take an interest and provide advice. The trials will run for about 18 months to inform our future work to support cash use and the cash system.

“Electronic payments generally add to retailer and customer costs, but banks’ withdrawal from offering suitable local cash services makes it harder and more costly for retailers and customers to use cash.  We want the cash system to remain resilient and retailers and individuals to continue to enjoy its social and economic benefits.”

“As well as ensuring cash remains available and easy to use, keeping it circulating within communities is more cost and time-efficient for everyone, and it’s better for the environment due to lowered demand for cash-related freight or travel,” says Woolford.

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