LOS ANGELES - Cash Technologies, Inc., (Amex: TQ) the developer of CoinBank electronic self-service coin counting machines, has introduced a new model, the CoinBank CB5, which permits financial institutions to offer direct coin deposits into a bank account via an ATM card.
According to a news release, this eliminates the need for a customer to wait in a teller line to redeem his or her coin receipt, reducing traffic in the bank branch and permitting installation in 24-hour banking centers.
There has been increased interest among financial institutions in offering coin counting as a customer service. (See related story Can small change make big impact at ATM?)
"Banks in both the U.S. and Europe are in stiff competition to obtain and retain customers and have begun to view coin counting as a way to enhance their service offering," said Bruce Korman, chief executive of Cash Technologies.
The CoinBank CB5 determines a coin's denomination by electronically measuring its metal content rather than by weight and size so that all foreign debris and coins are separated and returned.
If there is a coin jam or the machine reaches its storage capacity, CoinBank's patented mechanism returns uncounted coins to the customer and issues a receipt for the accepted
coins. In some competing products, according to the release, uncounted coins are trapped, which causes the customer to seek technical assistance.
The CB5, engineered and patented by Cash Tech, is produced under contract by Tecwings, Ges.m.b.H., a European electromechanical equipment manufacturer.
Cash Tech's wholly-owned European subsidiary, CoinBank Automations Handels, Ges.m.b.H., in June completed an agreement with banking equipment distributor Cash Solutions Geld., Ges.m.b.H. to market the CB5 machines in Europe. According to the release, similar agreements in the U.S. are being negotiated.
