Almost half of Britons report better cash access one year after FCA rules
Ahead of the one-year anniversary of the FCA’s Cash Access regulatory regime on 18th September 2024, NCR Atleos, the UK’s largest ATM operator and a leading provider of shared banking services, anonymously surveyed the public through an On Screen Questionnaire at 7,334 ATMs nationwide. The findings highlight the importance of cash in a time of financial strain: the FCA’s Financial Lives 2024 report revealed that 13.1 million adults have low financial resilience. With between five and six million adults relying on cash every day, access remains essential for households and businesses across the UK.
Against this backdrop, NCR Atleos’ data shows meaningful progress. Almost half of people (44%) – equivalent to 169,632 individuals – believe their access to cash has improved over the past year, rising to 47% at Protected ATM sites. Since September 2024, NCR Atleos have enabled over 150,000 deposit transactions worth more than £40m across its UK estate of 72 live Cash Access UK deposit-capable ATMs. This provides individuals, small businesses and local traders with a convenient, secure way to bank cash quickly without travelling to a branch.
This sits alongside the rollout of 121 banking hubs and nearly 100 deposit-capable ATMs in response to the FCA’s cash access regime, delivered through the combined efforts of banks, ATM operators and Cash Access UK. Together, these services now serve over 210,000 customers each month and process more than one million transactions, with innovations such as coin-handling facilities extending convenience and sustainability.
Neil Martin, area managing director for the UK, Ireland and Northern Europe at NCR Atleos, says: “The past year has been a resounding step in the right direction for providing vital cash access to the millions of people who still depend on it every day. The FCA’s regulation change has successfully driven new investment into hubs, protected ATMs and deposit services – infrastructure that now handles millions of customer transactions every month.”
Martin added: “But we must also keep pace. Hubs take time to establish and are resource-heavy, so it’s vital we complement them with cost-efficient models such as supermarket hubs and multi-bank deposit ATMs. Convenience is equally key. Services need to be available at times that suit people’s lives, whether that’s early in the morning or on a Sunday afternoon as families prepare for the week ahead. If we continue innovating in this way, the network will remain sustainable, resilient and fit for the future.”
Looking ahead, NCR Atleos plans to continue to expand cash services in partnership with banks and retailers by focusing on innovations that combine reliability with affordability. By complementing hubs with deposit-capable and coin-accepting ATMs, the model can be sustained and scaled, ensuring that communities and businesses across the UK continue to have convenient, reliable access to cash as part of a broader and more resilient payment system.