UK Cash Under Pressure

LINK, the UK’s main cash machine operator, reported a 37% drop in the number of ATM cash withdrawals in 2020, a significant fall. But that is still £1.6 billion withdrawn each week - £1,500 for each adult. With nearly 8% fewer free-to-use ATMs and nearly 18% fewer pay-to-use machines, these figures are even more impressive. John Howells, CEO of LINK, the UK’s largest cash machine network, made the point that ‘the sharp decline in ATM use brings significant problems (the) drop in transactions places enormous strain on the cash infrastructure’.

In the last three years the overall number of ATMs in the UK has fallen by 13,000 to 54,400. Since the start of 2020, 3,300 free-to-use ATMs have closed. By the end of 2021 NatWest will have closed 639 branches, Barclays 605 and HSBC 82. Although the UK government has said it will introduce legislation to protect cash for consumers, there is no timetable for its introduction.