News in Brief

Australian Campaigners Argue for Cash

In February A$9.5 billion was withdrawn from ATMs in Australia. This figure is being used by campaigners to argue that it is Australia’s banks, rather than Australia’s people, who are driving cash out. They argue that digital payments allow merchant service fees, card surcharges and access to valuable transaction data for banks.

A report released yesterday by the Reserve Bank showed Australians made 30,859,700 ATM cash withdrawals in February, up 3.6% compared to February 2023. There have been about a million cash withdrawals per day for two years.

The total value of those monthly withdrawals was $9.5 billion, with an average withdrawal of $308. Twelve months ago, the average ATM withdrawal was $292. An Australian Banking Association report says that cash accounted for 13% of payments at the end of 2022, down from 70% in 2007.