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China's FIs issue 1M ATM cards daily

November 14, 2013 by Terry Dooley — SVP & CIO, ITS, Inc

New data from consulting firm Retail Banking Research projects that the installed base of global ATMs will grow by 44 percent between 2012 and 2018.

The "Global ATM Market and Forecasts to 2018" report predicts that the number of ATMs around the world could reach 3.7 million just five years from now. Markets across Asia Pacific, the Middle East, and Africa are expected to experience the most significant growth, with increases projected to exceed 75 percent.

Central Europe and Latin America are also set to see an upsurge in ATM numbers, though not as sizable an increase as other regions. Western Europe and North America are projected to experience very little growth in the sector.

China is expected to account for the largest share of the predicted growth in worldwide numbers, mainly due to the rapid expansion of its largest financial institutions. ATMs in the region have seen the highest demand to date, with mega FIs issuing approximately 1 million new cards to customers every day.

These statistics indicate that consumers around the globe are still regularly making cash payments, despite the growing popularity of new and emerging payment methods, including mobile and contactless.

The report suggests that a number of reasons could be contributing to this, including a preference for using cash for smaller transactions, personal budgeting reasons, privacy, and large segments of unbanked populations globally.

Global cash withdrawal volumes are predicted to see a 65 percent jump by 2018, compared to a 44 percent increase in the number of ATMs. This means that in addition to increasing the number of ATMs in their fleet, deployers will also see a growth in profits on currently operating machines.

Worldwide ATM growth predictions highlight the continued need for new ATM innovations and features that can be added to better meet the needs, expectations, and demands of global ATM users.

Obviously, these numbers are encouraging in that despite the recent boon in the ever-evolving payments industry, consumers across the globe still turn to ATMs regularly for cash.

Read more about trends and statistics.

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