Applications end in June
The Reserve Bank (RBNZ) has launched a new initiative inviting rural towns to apply for trials aimed at improving cash services.
These trials include setting up local cash depots with automated cash banking facilities compatible with all banks or deploying a security van service.
Challenges in rural cash banking
According to Ian Woolford (pictured above), RBNZ’s director of money and cash, “Retailers and their customers are frustrated by cash banking difficulties, especially in rural New Zealand.”
The decline in accessible cash services has prompted this initiative as a way to address the growing concerns among residents.
“New Zealanders still value the option of using cash, and we want to see if better local cash infrastructure, and supporting retailers to readily offer cash-outs will help keep the option available,” Woolford said.
Criteria for cash service trial participation
The trials, announced in December, have already attracted nearly 80 expressions of interest from various communities.
Eligibility for participation requires towns to have populations between 1,000 and 10,000 residents and to have experienced significant reductions or complete losses in cash banking services.
Insights from RBNZ survey
RBNZ’s latest postal survey on cash use and payment preferences indicated a continuous decline in cash usage for everyday purposes among New Zealanders, with only 57.2% of respondents using cash in 2023, down from 60.4% in 2021.
“People living in rural areas found it harder to access cash services, like withdrawal and deposit, than those living in urban areas,” Woolford said. “Overall, the top reason given by respondents for difficulty accessing cash services was that there was no ATM or bank branch in their area.”
The survey data underscored the urgent need for the trials.
Commitment to cash access
RBNZ, which last month opened consultations on the implementation of digital cash, said it remains dedicated to ensuring that New Zealanders can continue to access and manage cash according to their needs or preferences. Alongside the trials, efforts are being made to define what constitutes a reasonable level of cash access and to develop tools to maintain this standard.
Application deadline and next steps
Interested towns must submit their applications by June 7 as RBNZ moves forward with these trials to potentially reshape how rural communities interact with cash banking services.
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