January 3, 2010
Data from MWE Consulting, which specialises in debit and credit card analysis, showed that debit card ATM withdrawals per account fell about 6.3 per cent to 2.39 a month last year. That compared with 2.55 in the previous year and 2.62 in 2006, when monthly transactions peaked."We have been seeing a reduction in cash transactions on credit (card) for a long time . . . but what is significant is this (debit card) reduction, which accelerated in the last year," said MWE managing director Mike Ebstein."I think that's a sign that Australians are beginning to move away from cash as their staple payment product."