The number of ATMs with the function of depositing physical money increased for the seventh year in a row in 2022, testifying to the increased investment of the banking sector to automate the provision of banking services.
The data of the Bank of Albania show that the number of ATM devices enabling cash deposits at the end of last year reached 305, with an increase of 23.5% compared to the previous year. Now, almost 36% of the total number of ATMs in the country offer cash deposit services.
The increase in the number of ATMs that offer the service is also reflected in their wider use by Albanians. According to the Bank of Albania, last year approximately 576,000 cash deposits were made at ATMs, an increase of 55% compared to 2021. While the total value of deposits reached ALL 29.9 billion, with a 50% increase compared to the previous year .
The addition of ATMs with a cash deposit function is an important development for facilitating the provision of banking services. Cash payments remain one of the main reasons for the flow of customers to bank branches. This problem became more tangible after the pandemic, due to the limitation of working hours, operations with reduced staff and the limitation of the number of persons allowed inside the branches.
The automation of this service through ATMs can significantly affect the reduction of flows, the reduction of queues and the use of bank branches only for those cases where the provision of the service by the staff is necessary. Just as for years the withdrawal of money needed for consumer spending is done from ATMs, now technology enables the same convenience for their deposit.
At the end of last year, the Albanian banking sector offered service through 855 active ATMs, an increase of 4% compared to the previous year. The number of ATMs had continuously decreased in the period 2015-2019, especially due to the decrease in the number of branches, but also due to the decrease in the total number of commercial banks.
But, starting from 2020, even under the impetus of the pandemic, banks increased the number of ATMs (mainly located in environments outside branches), in order to facilitate the flow of operations at the counters. At the same time, the addition of ATMs is being accompanied by updating the technology and the services offered by them.
Apparently, the increase in their number is still necessary to meet the needs of a society with a high use of cash and to reduce the flow of customers in branches.
Last year, about 64% of bank card transactions were cash withdrawals or deposits. In monetary terms, the weight of cash transactions is even higher, with around 85% of the total volume of card transactions. The percentage of actions with cash is gradually decreasing year after year, but however it remains dominant compared to the total number of actions that Albanians perform with bank cards.
This article was published by Monitor Magazine and reposted by Tiranapost.al
