Cash Infrastructure

2024 marked a pivotal chapter in the evolving narrative of cash. From New Zealand’s innovative community cash trials to Germany’s National Cash Forum, efforts were made to enhance access and acceptance of cash. Research delved into its psychological and societal importance, while the Paris Olympics exposed the challenges of cashless society. This retrospective captures key moments that shaped the discourse on relevance of cash, reflecting its enduring role in fostering financial inclusion, economic stability, privacy and consumer choice.

Domestic ATM cash withdrawals are subject to interchange fees, which are designed to compensate ATM deployers for operational costs. These fees have remained largely unchanged for years, in spite of rising operational costs. This divergence poses a threat to the sustainability of ATM networks.

CashEssentials will be hosting a seminar on the Future of Cash at the ATMIA Europe and Emerging Markets Conference in London on 10 October 2024. It will focus on understanding the changing cash environment and what stakeholders are doing to optimise the cash cycle and ensure the future viability and sustainability of cash.

Proposals from the financial services watchdog to protect and widen cash access are "a good start but could go further" argues the Federation of Small Businesses. Cash infrastructure should be considered a public good.

Cash prevails in the Palestinian economy in the form of Israeli shekels. Cross-border payments are unstable. Cash transfers will have a limited impact without humanitarian supplies to help displaced Gazans.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has approved the merger of the two largest cash in transit companies, Linfox Armaguard and Prosegur Australia. The merger will create a single cash logistics provider, operating under the Armaguard name, with an estimated market share of more than 90%.

The smooth circulation of coins is a pain point in the cash cycle. The RBI innovates by deploying vending machines to enhance access to coins.

Crises such as the Covid-19 pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine demonstrate the importance of a resilient cash cycle. Several countries are taking measures to further secure the supply of cash in times of crisis.

A massive winter storm caused widespread power outages across the United States. Cash demonstrated its resilience during the blizzard in the worst-affected Buffalo area.

After record growth in 2020, global demand for banknotes has returned to a normal situation. More recently, rising inflation and increasing interest rates have been negatively impacting cash balances. More concerning is the decreasing transactional use of cash, which puts pressure on the cash infrastructure. The cash community should make the case that cash is part of a critical public infrastructure, the maintenance and development of which should be financed accordingly.

In 2021, global cash demand returned to a normal pre-covid distribution, which is quite remarkable after the exceptional growth in 2020. Looking forward, demand will be influenced negatively by rising interest rates and positively by geopolitical tensions. More than ever, a well-functioning cash infrastructure is essential to meet volatile demand.

In this eight episode, James Shepherd-Barron talks to Brett Scott about his latest book 'Cloud Money'. In a wide-ranging discussion, they take a deeper look at the political economy of cash and the ideology driving the erosion of cash-based systems.