Article

Cardtronics: Redesign of banknotes will be costly

September 26, 2010

The United States Treasury Department's plan to redesign the nation's banknotes to make them accessible to the blind and visually impaired will force Cardtronics Inc. to make significant and costly changes, Michael E. Keller, Cardtronics general counsel, wrote in a letter to the U.S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing.

Although the Treasury Department has not yet made a final decision about the redesign of Federal Reserve notes, the department is leaning toward placing tactile characters on banknotes so the blind and visually impaired can easily identify each denomination of paper money by touch.

Such a move would force Cardtronics to spend a lot of money making sure cash dispensers do not jam, Keller said. He did not say how much money would be involved. Cardtronics declined further comment.

“Cardtronics will be adversely affected should such a change in currency force us to make hardware and/or software changes in order for our ATMs to continue to function properly,” Keller wrote. “Retrofitting ATMs all over the country is costly not only due to purchasing the hardware/software upgrades from the manufacturer, but the labor and travel associated with a large number of upgrades required in a relatively short period of time. In some cases, retrofitting older models is not possible and would require us to replace such ATMs.”

Houston-based Cardtronics owns and operates more than 33,700 ATMs in the United States, United Kingdom, Mexico, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. It is the world's largest ATM ISO. The majority of the nation’s ATMs dispense only $20 bills, although some machines issue other denominations.

A federal court ordered the Treasury Department to redesign the nation’s Federal Reserve Notes. U.S. District Court Judge James Robertson in November 2006 issued a ruling ordering redesign of the banknotes to comply with the 1973 Federal Rehabilitation Act. The U.S. Circuit Court for the District of Columbia in 2008 upheld Robertson’s ruling, and the Treasury Department decided not to appeal the decision to U.S. Supreme Court.

Keller submitted his letter to the Bureau of Engraving and Printing during a period of public comment, which ended Aug. 18. Eighty-two individuals, organizations and financial firms submitted comments. The Bureau of Engraving and Printing prints Federal Reserve Notes.

When the Treasury Department filed its notice for public comment in the Federal Register, department officials also said they may loan mechanical currency readers to the blind and visually impaired upon request. Department officials, however, voiced their strongest support for the tactile characters, which are smaller than Braille characters.

In addition to causing ATMs to jam, an ill-designed tactile character would lead to fewer bills being placed in each cassette, Keller wrote. “Both problems could stall the industry and, in turn, stall commerce,” he said.

The Treasury Department may issue its decision about tactile characters in late October, ATMmarketplace.com has learned.