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Budgeting 'with physical money' sees cash withdrawals rise by 10%

Budgeting 'with physical money' sees cash withdrawals rise by 10%
Matt Browning
Written By:
Posted:
07/01/2025
Updated:
07/01/2025

Cash withdrawals rose by 10% in 2024 compared to the previous year due to more customers budgeting with physical money, banking data reveals.

There were 32.8 million withdrawals from Nationwide’s 1,260 ATMs in its 605 branches, with the number of non-Nationwide customers taking money out rising by 16% in 2023.

Collectively, customers of the mutual and those without an account took out an average of £112 from a Nationwide ATM at each visit.

Withdrawals peaked during the week before Christmas, when ATMs dispensed almost £100m, which is the most in a single week since before the Covid-19 pandemic in 2019.

Another popular week for cash withdrawals was the one leading up to Black Friday at the end of November, when shoppers withdrew £85.3m. This was a 12% increase from the year before and is the second-highest amount since the pandemic.

With families staying at home due to lockdowns, the pandemic saw cash withdrawals crash by 40% to stand at 26.4 million in 2020, compared to 44 million in 2019.

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Around a third of all Brits have a digital-only bank account, separate research from Finder found. Since January 2022, 1,541 bank branches have been flagged for closure, according to ATM network LINK.

However, the importance of ATMs is evident in that almost half of all transactions were for other services, including printing mini statements, paying in cash and paying bills. Also, while using debit cards remains king for two-thirds of shoppers, cash transactions in retailers rose by almost a fifth (19.9%) in 2023 – the second year in a row that this usage grew, according to British Retail Consortium (BRC) data.

Since September, banks and building societies have had to fill in the gaps in areas where accessing cash has proved difficult due to branch closures.

The legislation from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) means bank branches and ATMs need to remain open until there are additional cash services for that community made available.

The changes will not halt the number of bank branches closing, but mean the locations of those shutting are more carefully considered.

This marks the third year Nationwide has recorded a rise in cash withdrawals, which the mutual attributed to households budgeting using physical cash as opposed to their online or app banking alternatives.

‘Rising cost of living continues to impact people’

Otto Benz, director of payments at Nationwide Building Society, said: “The rising cost of living continues to impact people and many are opting to budget with physical money to avoid getting into debt. Nationwide has the largest branch network in the UK, which allows us to support customers who want access to cash, whether that be from our ATMs or over the counter.

“The major banks have closed branches in towns and cities across the country, taking away many of the free ATMs that people rely on, which is why the biggest rise in withdrawals comes from non-Nationwide customers.”

Benz added: “The resurgence of cash shows why we need to continue having a physical presence on the high street, enabling customers to access their money on their terms, whether digitally or in branch.”