Press release -
Post Offices record highest amount of business cash deposits all year
- Post Offices handled £1.03 billion in business cash deposits in August, the highest amount recorded so far this year, despite August traditionally being a quieter month for banking services
- Business cash deposits were up 2.2% month-on-month and up 23.5% compared with August 2020 as international travel uncertainty meant more cash spent locally at hospitality venues.
- Recent Post Office survey found nearly half (44%) of small hospitality and leisure businesses in the UK rely on cash daily.
- Personal cash withdrawals totalled £667 million, up 0.3% on July (£665.5 million) despite August traditionally being a quieter month.
- In total, £2.9 billion was deposited and withdrawn by personal and business customers in August, the highest ever amount in a single month, and a demonstration of the daily reliance on cash that millions of businesses and consumers have.
Post Offices in August saw the highest amount of business cash deposits so far this year in what has traditionally been a quieter month for banking services.
£1.03 billion was deposited by business customers in August. This was up 2.2% month-on-month (£1 billion, July 2021) and up 23.5% on August 2020 (£831 million). August was the third successive month where business cash deposits have exceeded a billion pounds.
Post Office has attributed the continual increase in business cash deposits to the on-going international travel uncertainty which has resulted in more staycations and more cash being spent locally in the hospitality and leisure sector.
A recent Post Office survey found nearly half (44%) of small hospitality and leisure businesses in the UK rely on cash daily. A third (34%) of hospitality and leisure business owners said they would fear for the security of their business if they didn’t have the ability to deposit cash at the end of each day. Post Office recently launched a ‘Save Our Cash’ campaign calling for the Government to speed up legislation to protect access to cash for the millions of people and businesses that rely on it.
In total, £2.9 billion was deposited and withdrawn by personal and business customers in August, the highest ever amount in a single month, and a demonstration of the daily reliance on cash that millions of businesses and consumers have. In July, the figure was £2.87 billion.
Martin Kearsley, Banking Director at Post Office, said:
“Small businesses particularly in the hospitality and leisure sector recognise the value of cash now more than ever. They need cash to operate and somewhere they can securely and quickly deposit it without missing out on trade. August has traditionally been a quieter month for cash deposits at our branches, but not this year. Postmasters have been on hand throughout the summer dealing with record amounts of cash and supporting local businesses in the community by staying open long hours and weekends, providing a convenient and secure place for businesses and the self-employed to deposit much needed cash takings.”
Personal cash withdrawals
Personal cash withdrawals in August 2021 totalled £667 million, up 0.3% on July (£665.5 million) despite August usually being a quieter month. Personal cash withdrawals were up 21% year-on-year (£552 million, August 2020).
Personal cash deposits
Personal cash deposits exceeded a billion pounds for the sixth successive month. In August, £1.18 billion was deposited over the counters which was 0.1% up month-on-month.
This month’s publication marks one year since Post Office started publishing its monthly cash tracker. Post Office will be using data from its cash tracker and learnings from the two Post Office BankHUBS that it operates to support its contribution to the forthcoming HMT Access to Cash Consultation submission response.
Post Office Cash tracker data – August 2021
Cash deposits value (business & personal) | MOM% | YOY% | Cash withdrawals value (business & personal) | MOM% | YOY% | Total cash deposits & withdrawal value for August 2021 | |
UK[1] | £2.20bn | +1.1% | +24.2% | £691m | +0.1% | +20.5% | £2.90bn |
England | £1.80bn | +0.7% | +26.0% | £539m | -0.2% | +20.5% | £2.34bn |
Scotland | £172.1m | +5.0% | +19.5% | £53.2m | -0.2% | +13.1% | £225.3m |
Wales | £117.6m | +3.3% | +21.6% | £57.2m | +0.3% | +16.8% | £174.8m |
Northern Ireland | £110.6m | -0.7% | +8.1% | £41.7m | +4.6% | +38.0% | £152.3m |
Business cash deposits
Personal cash deposits
Personal cash withdrawals
For further data and analysis, visit www.corporate.postoffice.co.uk/cashtracker
Ends
About Post Office Cash Tracker and access to cash
Data included in this press release reflects cash services used under the Banking Framework. Over 30 banks and building societies are part of the Banking Framework which enables their customers to withdraw or deposit cash at any of the Post Office’s 11,500 branches. The figures exclude Post Office Card Account withdrawals.
Post Office is running its ‘Save our Cash’ campaign. At www.SaveOurCash.co.uk, visitors can hear the real stories of people reliant on cash and learn more about how cash plays such a pivotal role in their lives. Post Office is calling on as many people as possible to write to their MP to support policies and legislation that protect cash and place an obligation on the banks to guarantee access to cash across the UK.
[1] Figures for cash deposits value and cash withdrawals value by country have been rounded to the nearest million. This is why value figures per country will not add up exactly to the total for the UK.
Categories
About the Post Office
- With over 11,500 branches, Post Office has the biggest retail network in the UK, with more branches than all the banks and building societies combined.
- Post Office is helping anyone who wants cash to get it whichever way is most convenient. Partnership with over 30 banks, building societies and credit unions means that 99% of UK bank customers can access their accounts at their Post Office.
- Cash withdrawals, deposits and balance enquiries can be made securely and conveniently over the counter at any Post Office; and the biggest investment by any organisation or company in the last decade is being made to safeguard 1,400 free-to-use ATMs across the UK.
- Post Office is simplifying its proposition for Postmasters with a focus on its cash and banking; mails and parcels; foreign exchange; and bill payments services.
- Research has found that visits to the Post Office help drive another 400 million visitors to other shops, restaurants and local businesses equating to an estimated £1.1 billion in additional revenue for High Street businesses.
- 99.7% of the population live within three miles of a Post Office; and 4,000 branches are open seven days a week.
