• PayPoint is rolling out its Counter Cash service nationally, prioritising areas where access to cash has become increasingly challenging for local communities
• PayPoint Counter Cash allows customers to withdraw cash and/or check their bank balance safely and conveniently at a counter for free with no purchase necessary, from 1p to £50

20^th October 00:01, Welwyn Garden City: PayPoint today announces the national roll-out of its Counter Cash service, which enables anyone to withdraw specific denominations of cash from £0.01 to £50, from participating PayPoint retailer partners. The service will initially be targeting specific areas of the UK with little to no cash access, providing confidence that access is protected over the long term.

This follows PayPoint research into the most cash reliant areas of the UK, which combined PayPoint sales data, looking at cash as an overall percentage of transactions in its network of 28,000 UK stores over FY20/21, with regional attitudinal data* of how many people said they are reliant on cash.

Of the 48 UK counties included in the study**, 43 had an overall cash reliance score of >50%, indicating that the need for cash by millions of people to support day-to-day expenditure is still of major importance across the whole of the UK. The study also revealed that one in five (21%) people across the UK still use an ATM two to three times a week.

More than two thirds (67%) of all purchases in PayPoint’s network were made in cash over FY2020/21. 62% of people in Wales and 64% of people in England think more should be done to protect cash, rising to 67% in Scotland.

Counter Cash is a first of its kind in scale and ambition beyond the traditional ATM. Participating retailers in the scheme will enjoy benefits including:

• Earning commission on every transaction they process – including withdrawals and balance enquiries
• Save on banking charges by recycling cash they take in for PayPoint services
• Offering a vital, high profile service to their local community

Nick Wiles, Chief Executive of PayPoint, said: “Bank branches and ATMs have been disappearing at an alarming rate over the last few years and the UK’s rapid growth in digital payments, across every corner of the economy, has left millions of people who use cash every day at risk of being left behind.

“Today PayPoint is laying out its long-term commitment to do everything it can to ensure easy, free cash access, working with partners across industry and government, ahead of the official launch of PayPoint Counter Cash on November 1^st.  The service will not only enable people to make exact withdrawals, down to a single penny, unlike an ATM, but will also be completely free to customers and profitable to the retailers that offer it.

“I’m incredibly proud of the support that PayPoint’s network offers local communities across the UK and I would like to congratulate our participating Counter Cash retailer partners for providing yet another vital community service.”

PayPoint Counter Cash trial participant Imran Hamid, Local Shop Owner, Dennyloanhead, Scotland said: “Denny is a town where we used to have TSB, a Royal Bank of Scotland, a Bank of Scotland, a Clydesdale Bank and now they’ve all shut. I think it’s just a community thing where we try to help and give back something.

“We’ve also got people who are on benefits here and they want access to their cash. That’s another good thing about this – they can withdraw anything from a penny to £50. If someone on benefits has only got £3.50 left in their bank account and they want that £3.50, I can give it to them and it’s not going to cost them anything.”

The UK’s cash reliance county rankings are as follows:

PayPoint Press Office
MHP Communications
[email protected]
+44 20 3128 8100

* PayPoint commissioned Censuswide to survey 2,000 UK consumers, with a nationally-representative sample in July 2021

** Only counties where PayPoint’s network of 28,000 convenience stores covers more than 5 stores were included in the study

*** The cash reliance score combines store transaction data (the percentage of purchases made in cash) with regional attitudinal data (the percentage of people who consider themselves to be cash-reliant)

ABOUT PAYPOINT GROUP

For tens of thousands of businesses and millions of consumers, we deliver innovative technology and services that make life a little easier.

The PayPoint Group serves a diverse range of organisations, from SME and convenience retailer partners, to local authorities, multinational service providers and e-commerce brands. Our products are split across three core business divisions:

• In Shopping, we enhance retailer propositions and customer experiences through EPoS services via PayPoint One, card payment technology, ATMs and home delivery technology partnerships in over 60,000 SME and retailer partner locations across multiple sectors. Our retail network of over 28,000 convenience stores is larger than all the banks, supermarkets and Post Offices put together
• In E-commerce, we deliver best-in-class customer journeys through Collect+, a tech-based delivery solution that allows parcels to be sent, picked up and dropped off at thousands of local stores
• In Payments and Banking, we help companies and their customers make and receive payments quickly and conveniently. This includes our digital payments platform, MultiPay, an eMoney offering that enables cash through to digital transactions and cash solutions providing vital consumer access across our extensive retail network

Together, these solutions enable The PayPoint Group to create long-term value for all stakeholders, including customers, communities and the world we live in.