ATMs rose for cash

The number of ATMs installed by Russian banks began to increase for the first time in two years. Experts explain the change in trend by the need to modernize the fleet of devices in connection with the withdrawal of Western manufacturers from the Russian market. The need to equip the newly annexed territories with ATMs also played a role, where PSB installed 700 ATMs last year. At the same time, citizens began to use cash withdrawals more actively, including against the background of the growth of the “gray” segment of the economy.

According to the statistics of the National Payment System, published on Wednesday, March 22, by the Bank of Russia, the trend towards a decrease in the number of ATMs, which had been going on since the end of 2020, was interrupted in the fourth quarter of last year. At the end of 2022, their total number reached 173.5 thousand, having increased by 1.8 thousand over the quarter. At the same time, over the two previous years, the ATM fleet decreased by more than 22 thousand (over 11%).

According to experts, the Central Bank made its contribution to this dynamic by announcing in the middle of last year the introduction of a new 100-ruble banknote into circulation in Russia. (see “Kommersant” dated June 30, 2022). The fact is that, according to market participants, banks need to set up ATMs with the function of depositing banknotes in order to accept new banknotes. But since the leading Western manufacturers of ATMs NCR and Diebold Nixdorf left Russia and refuse to work with Russian banks, it will not be possible to set up the machines of these companies to accept new banknotes. The only way out is to replace them with Chinese and Korean devices, whose manufacturers are ready to service ATMs supplied to Russian banks. The Association of Banks of Russia (ADB) warned the Central Bank about this problem last spring. They indicated that more than 60% of ATMs are NCR and Diebold Nixdorf models. “With the departure of suppliers, any updates to the software of validators in the recycling / cash acceptance modules of ATMs, as well as cash registers, terminals, became impossible, which leads to the inability to add / change templates for banknotes of both new denominations and a new sample,” the letter said. ADB.

Banks at their level are trying to solve this problem. According to Sergey Panyushkin, head of the VTB Self-Service Devices department, the bank regularly upgrades its ATM network, in particular, more than 1,000 ATMs were upgraded last year, and it is testing new models from different companies. “We strive to ensure that ATMs work as mini-offices with comprehensive services: from cash withdrawals and replenishment of cards to opening savings accounts and deposits,” he explained. At the same time, according to him, the VTB ATM network has more than 14.5 thousand devices. Other banks are also upgrading their ATM networks and announced plans last summer to purchase devices from friendly countries. Including, according to market participants, Sberbank planned to purchase a large batch of Chinese ATMs (see “Kommersant” dated September 12, 2022). According to experts, plans to create domestic ATMs, pilot samples of which are already being tested by a number of banks, can also contribute to the trend towards an increase in the number of ATMs.

In addition, ATMs were actively supplied to new Russian territories. During the year, the number of PSB ATMs has increased significantly, due to the active expansion of the bank’s branch network, including in new Russian regions, where the PSB ATM network exceeds 700 devices.

Simultaneously with the increase in the number of ATMs, the volume of cash withdrawals by citizens also increased. And in the fourth quarter of last year, for the first time in history, it exceeded 8 trillion rubles.

At the same time, taking into account the reduction in the number of such transactions, at the end of last year, an absolute record was set in terms of the average check value – more than 15 thousand rubles. As Viktor Dostov, chairman of the Association of Participants in the Market of Electronic Money and Money Transfers, explained, despite the general trend towards a decrease in the share of cash in settlements, the total amount of cash is growing almost everywhere. “Cash is used, for example, to quickly transfer significant amounts from bank to bank without commission or to move money to neighboring countries,” he says. In turn, Dmitry Vishnyakov, an independent expert in the payment card market, believes that these indicators are one of the indicators of the growth of the “gray” economy, since today there is more and more demand for cash to pay for goods and services.

Maxim Buylov