I just received an email from my local ANZ branch informing me of an upcoming renovation, and how they are committed to improving my banking experience.
After the renovation however, the BANK will no longer allow over the counter cash deposits and withdrawals! Isn’t that what a bank is for? Well not according to the email! Staff will be on hand as ‘sales people’ only, peddling their products. If you want to take cash out, you’ll be forced to use the ATM.
That’s some reno, thanks ANZ for making the decision to leave you nice and easy!
As ANZ no longer offer passbook accounts, all transactions including those in the past and using a teller would have been done with a card swipe/tap. In effect the teller acting as a manual ATM.
ANZ email indicates that they will have a Smart ATM in the branch for deposits and withdrawals, so deposits/withdrawals will be possible in the branch, albeit without the usual ‘chin wag’ with teller staff.
Slight envy to still have an ANZ branch to go to when one needs a straight talk with the bank. One that only takes minutes, vs the online options. The second option always seems to take much longer and too often leads to anywhere but the solution one knows should exist.
Note:
Our ANZ has left town, along with other big names ComBank, Westpac, Suncorp. Eventually an ANZ branded ATM appeared in a different location as a replacement.
The alternative is cash out at Woolies. The local Aust Post Agencies offer more, but with fewer opening hours. For those with friendly faces also a reliable source of local wisdom/news. Chat time is limited only by the queue at the counter and what one can offer in return. The 2 staff in ours usually outnumber the customers most times of the day.
Depends on how much cash we are talking - I’ve done upwards of 20k in the past, don’t really want to stand on the street (even moreso where I live than ‘normal places’) counting that kind of cash. I went to the local (not ANZ) branch a few years back to deposit a bank cheque - the kind lady said I could do that at the ATM and not have to wait in line. I declined, and when I told her why and she saw the size of the cheque she invited me to her office to take care of it personally - turned out she was the branch manager.
20k to a few hundred k - ATM doesn’t cut it for me To be fair - thats fairly rare, wish it was more common !!
I’ve left two (2) financial institutions because they pushed me to a call centre as they de-populated their local branch staff - both in the suburbs. About to leave the third. They either do it wholesale or just pare down their local representation. CBA in this town had an amazing home loan lady and another lady in training, also very professional and promising - the other day they told me there were no options but the online/call centre or I could call the next nearest one, many hundreds of kms away. Both the ladies were no longer with CBA - I could do a telephone call with the nearest - also remote, in QLD (Mt Isa). Why bother? how long will they be there?
They lose my parcels - trust them with my money? never. Your mileage may vary
Because when I’m handing over my weekly cash takings from my business, I want to do so in the privacy and safety over an over-the-counter transaction, not out in public in front of an ATM for the world to see.
I get that people are using pay wave more and more these days, but money is still legal tender in Australia. A bank refusing to accept it over the counter isn’t a bank anymore, it’s a sales office.
I can see that is a problem. There are a few situations where people have little choice but to deal with significant amounts of cash. It is not the same problem that I asked the OP about though. Most cash transactions are smallish withdrawals that an ATM can handle.
Good point, but ‘Onsite’ ATMs (within bank premises) are not just as private as over the counter when other customers are behind you, and also close to you at the next teller?
I would speak to ANZ as the original (mass sending to all branch customers) message might be targeting personal banking rather than business banking customers. It is possible that business banking may be dealt with differently or the changes are the same as for personal banking customers. The only way to find out is to talk to them.
I see that the message had an ability to make an appointment. Why not make an appointment, so you can speak about your own (business) circumstances and find out how the branch changes impacts on your business banking (if any) and what solutions are available to you into the future.
1] All banks are making this progress, not just ANZ
2] It is good progress
3] Look at any bank job adverts; they are mostly out-of-branch chat and call-centres, so they are clearly moving staff from branches to remote service
4] Your new branch will probably have a business fast deposit system, and a coin counter
If you have a business that uses cash there should be a way to verify what you have before it goes away by armoured truck. The current method for bulk coin with ANZ is to put it in special bags and deposit it through the wall or in the bank where it is stored for collection.
The bank may later claim that you are short and you have no way to dispute this. Apparently picking up bagged bulk coin is now an OHS risk. Our local CBA still has a coin counting machine that is free for account holders. I have been told that the machine can fill up and staff need to empty it before you can process more coins but haven’t experienced this personally.
There are also situations where you want particular note denominations that aren’t available via ATM.
Two reasons. 1. ATMs don’t dispense $100 notes.
2. The screens on many ATMs are very difficult to read in direct sunlight, especially for those with poor eyesight.
A common problem whether an ATM or over the counter. Self inflicted?
We’re substantially a cashless society, with Covid safe practices converting more of us to tap to pay norms. Handling cash is an overhead a bank needs to recover by adding the costs to other services provided to customers.
Evident in some of the better deals provided by online banks or limited fee free transactions. The ANZ and others have decided branches, and I’ll suggest ATM’s are not essential in keeping their best customers.
For some of us is the future pointing to relying more on the financial services branded by one of the two big supermarkets. For those needing a loan, car or home there are now numerous brokers offering alternative contacts to the traditional bank loans staff.
As a follow up to the disappearing branches, where do the big 4 see their business models evolving to in 5, 10 and 25 years time? They will have a vision and a plan on how to get there.
Those are two reasons that never crossed my mind, nor have I heard them from others before. I find $50 notes work just fine (my bookie isn’t fussed) and I can see the screen and buttons on any ATM I have used well enough despite having less than great eyesight. I don’t recall ever seeing one where the screen is in direct sunlight thought I guess it could happen in some situations.
An arborist service I have used takes cash or a surcharged credit card, no EFT. They are happy to take their roughly $3,000+ in whatever denomination is presented, but 30 x $100 notes is a bit easier to handle than 60 x $50 or 300 x $10. Cards? I resent having to pay $45 to pay anyone and have since moved on from that otherwise good service because of their payments policy.
They sure do. I carry about $1,000 in cash when I’m shopping and when all the electronics were out in my local supermarket were out last week and they could still take cash. (This is not always the case when electronics go down, but it’s the general rule at country petrol stations where cash is frequently used.) Easier to carry that in 10 notes rather than 20. And, as you say, by-passing the Visa/Mastercard commission is a win-win for both buyer and seller.
Cashless, no branches, everything online/remote. Unfortunately businesses have woken up to the fact that if they’re ‘all doing it’ we have no choice.
I read many years ago that the big banks would prefer to be rid of private customers and small/micro business. They don’t have to actually say they’re forcing our hand, they can just to do it.
Of course the most vulnerable are as always the biggest losers - those who have no internet for whatever reason or can’t use it, the elderly who aren’t computer literate etc etc all the usual suspects.
When the banks were closing down rural bank branches all over Australia about 15 or so years ago, Chinchilla in Queensland retained all 4 banks. It was a telltake sign of the gas companies that were about to move in. I think all 4 banks are still there.
I have often wondered who puts ATMs in the spots they do, so the screen is completely in full sun meaning you have to squint and work out how to shade the screen to use it.
Plus I see in the chat so far no-one seems to mention elderly or those with some disability or other. Guess they are not important to ANZ which assumes they don’t have much cash behind them.
To be fair - thats fairly rare, wish it was more common !!
