1.6 million Aussies withdrew $500 million on Cash Out Day

An estimated 1.6 million Aussies withdrew $500 million in a big vote NO to a cashless society on Tuesday 2nd April "Cash Out Day"

Cash Out Day began as a movement on social media urging people to withdraw money to register a protest 'vote' against the prospect of a cashless Australia.

Reserve Bank of Australia data shows a $500 million jump in the value of bank notes on issue on and around Tuesday 2nd April - "Cash Out Day."

ATM companies have confirmed a significant rise in transactions on Tuesday 2nd April.

atmx by Armaguard, the operator of the largest fee-free ATM network, reported increased withdrawals of up to 20% across their national network.

"We saw a rise in cash usage during 'Cash Out Day' as consumers responded to the 'use cash' campaign on Tuesday 2nd April," said Con Tsiknis, Head of ATMs at Armaguard.

Next Payments noticed a 6.2 per cent jump nationwide and 14 per cent rise in withdrawals made at shopping centres.

"Tuesday after Easter is usually a quiet day but this year Australians voted with their dollars quite clearly on 2nd April," said Executive Chair of Next Payments, Tim Wildash.

"I think Cash Out Day was a big vote for our right to the privacy and reliability of cash."

This chart is RBA Notes on Issue last 12 months. The amount of cash on issue surged up from around $101 billion to $101.5 billion in the first week of April 2024.

Jason Bryce from the Cash Welcome campaign said the average ATM cash withdrawal is about $300 so 1.66 million Australians made a special trip to an ATM on Cash Out Day to take out the additional $500 million banknotes now circulating in the community.

"If all the withdrawals were around $300, and I'm sure they were not, that would mean about 1.6 million Australians made a special withdrawal on Cash Out Day," said Jason Bryce.

"What is clear is that Cash Out Day was a success because at least 1.6 million Australians and probably many more, registered their dissatisfaction with banks for not providing easy access to our cash.

"On average in Australia there are 1 million ATM withdrawals so an extra 1.6 million on one day is a big vote of confidence in cash."

More information: Jason Bryce
Phone: 0428 777 727
jason@cashwelcome.org