also from Boom

Macquarie Bank is Australia’s fifth largest bank.

Recently a Macquarie Bank spokesperson said — “As a digital bank, we’re committed to transitioning to completely digital payments by November 2024 as a safer, faster and convenient way to bank.”

“The majority of our customers already bank digitally and we’re working very closely to support the less than 1 percent of our customers who currently use cheques or cash to ensure they have access to other digital payment methods.”

Macquarie Bank will phase out its cash, cheque and phone payments for customers from next year as it moves to digital-only payment systems.

In a letter written to customers, Macquarie Bank said that by November 2024 customers will be unable to write or deposit cheques (including bank cheques), deposit or withdraw cash over the counter at NAB branches or make a super contribution or payment with a cheque. Macquarie Bank’s telephone banking system will be scrapped in March next year, while in May cheques will be ditched completely.

Customers will also be no longer able to deposit or withdraw cash or cheques over the counter at Macquarie branches from May 2024.

To BOOM, this is a grave mistake. As long term readers will know, BOOM is a great admirer of cash in its ability to be a natural buffer for credit money excess in the money supply of any economy. BOOM expects the next big societal trend in all the advanced economies will be a return to using physical cash.

For any bank to openly turn its back on cash at this juncture is a direct challenge to its customers. Customers are familiar with cash. They understand its utility. They know that it can save them in an electrical blackout or in a natural disaster. They trust it. This experiment by Macquarie may backfire badly if they start losing customers. And if that were to happen, they will have to admit defeat and beg their customers to return. Such a situation for a major bank would be very worrying indeed. This experiment has a significant chance of failure. And such a failure could damage the bank’s reputation irrevocably.