SYDNEY - Australia's fast-growing ATM industry is showing signs of a slowdown, with transaction volumes falling as the number of machines continues to rise.
According to a report in The Australian, citing statistics from the Australian Payments Clearing Association (APCA), the number of ATMs stood at 21,603 at the end of June 2003 – 31 percent more than a year earlier.
However, the number of ATM transactions in May 2003 – selected as the month best representing annual activity without statistical glitches – dipped to 62.9 million, from 65.4 million the previous May.
The value of these transactions grew to $11.1 billion, from $11 billion previously.
The slowdown in activity is a turnaround on the five-year trend, during which transactions grew by 50 percent and the value jumped 63 percent.
Most of this rapid growth has come as ATMs spread from bank-owned facilities outside branches to machines owned by independent providers in pubs, clubs, convenience stores and service stations, according to the Australian report.
The apparent saturation comes as the country's biggest ATM owner, Cashcard, prepares for a $300 million float. Cashcard, which owns 5,400 ATMs, has brought forward its listing to November to get ahead of dozens of other planned initial public offerings in the next six months.
The number of point-of-sale terminals climbed 4.4 percent, to 433,640 terminals on June 30 from 415,167 a year earlier, but transaction volumes slumped almost 10 percent.
The ATM and POS growth comes ahead of likely dramatic changes to the economics of both payment forms.
According to the Australian, the banking industry is proposing a zero interchange fee regime for both ATMs and POS transactions.
Under the proposal, ATM owners would recoup a fee or surcharge directly from the customer, rather than the customer's bank. Foreign ATM fees would be abolished.
