Cash out elbows ATMs aside

"Cash out" at Eftpos is making gains as a supplier of cash for everyday use, a trend that may be contributing to a decline in the number of automatic teller machines

The share of the value of cash withdrawn via Eftpos from bank accounts outside of bank branches increased to 9.1 per cent in the year to March 2011, from 8.7 per cent the previous year, analysis by MWE Consulting of the monthly Reserve Bank of Australia payments' data shows.

This ratio was as low as 7.8 per cent in 2007.

More transparent pricing arrangements for ATM fees since March 2009, combined with greater public awareness of the options for accessing cash, appear to be driving people to take cash out at the supermarket or other retail outlets when paying for goods via Eftpos.

A related trend highlighted in the MWE analysis is a decline in the number of ATM transactions.

The volume per ATM device has fallen by 9.5 per cent over the last two years, with the value down by 7.3 per cent.

The annual value of withdrawals via an ATM operated by an entity other than the card-holder's bank is now A$10 billion lower than two years ago. However, the decline in ATM use at other ATMs has largely come to an end.

These trends may explain why the number of ATMs fell by 688 from December 2010 to March 2011, to 27,396. The ATM network size at March 2011 is 539 below the level of March 2010 and just 373 higher than at March 2009, MWE noted in its monthly report.

This data throws a different light on the business models of smaller independent deployers of ATMs such as MyATM, GRG and ICash, all of whom have heavily marketed the devices over the last couple of years on the basis that the Australian market is under-serviced and that high margins are achievable for business owners and investors that fund individual machines.