NEW DATA: Why Australians Haven’t Given Up On Cash

In the 26 years of continued economic growth in Australia, cash has continued to play an imperative role.

In 2016 alone, Australian consumers and businesses spent some $143 billion in cold, hard cash.

But while the country sees a high usage of the age-old payment method, it is also seeing a proliferation of digital payment methods. Established financial institutions and up-and-coming FinTech startups alike are introducing an endless stream of new payments technologies. In some ways, the Australian economy is more digitized than even that of the U.S.

That said, adoption of non-cash alternatives remains uneven. There are still aspects of everyday life that remain relatively untouched by the digital revolution. Australians may be turning to digital payments platforms to make more expensive purchases, but cash is increasingly being used to pay for smaller, daily expenses, such as lunches, snacks and impulse buys.

In short, Australians’ relationship with their cash is in flux — sometimes, for the better. For all the hubbub surrounding digital payment innovations, cash remains an integral part of the Australian economy. In fact, the real value of all cash in circulation is growing at an annual rate of 6 percent.

In the latest Australian edition of the Global Cash Index, the PYMNTS research team, in collaboration with Cardtronics, investigates the evolving relationship between Australian shoppers and their preferred payment methods.

Other key findings in the latest Australian Cash Report include:

135: The number of ATM terminals per 100,000 Australian citizens in 2016

11.2: Cash share of Australia’s economy in 2016

11 percent: Purchases made with cash in Australia in 2016

To find out more about how modern Australian shoppers are using their cash, click here to download the report.

About the Report

The Global Cash Index, a Cardtronics collaboration, focuses on the use of cash for making payments and as a payment method that equally plays a role with cards, checks, direct debit and other methods of settling up between consumers and businesses. Unlike most reported estimates of cash, our proprietary data analysis focuses on the use of cash for making payments rather than hoarding.