COVID TURNS PUBLIC OFF CASH

THE physical handling of money could soon be non-existent as Australians continue to ditch cash and switch to card-only payments.

According to the Reserve Bank of Australia, cash withdrawals at ATMs fell by 15.3 per cent in the 2021 financial year across the country.

There were 394.7 million withdrawals last year, 466 million in 2020 and 575.7 million in 2019.

National Australia Bank executive Paul Riley said Covid had contributed to the death of cash.

“The pandemic has accelerated the trend away from cash and towards online banking,” he said.

“We have heard many stories of customers being delighted to learn what they can now easily do online, on their mobile, at a time and place that suits them.”

Physical notes and coins became frowned on in early 2020 as public health officials globally encouraged people to quit paying with money and switch to card-only payments to reduce the risk of transferring germs and potentially further spreading Covid.

Mr Riley said a 105-year-old customer signed up for her first debit card in the early months of the pandemic.

He said more than 94 per cent of customer interactions were taking place by phone, video or online.