World ATM Day – Celebrating the World’s Original Fintech

As is widely recognised, the invention of the ATM has been one of the single most significant developments in the history of money – providing it with the core attributes of near-universal availability and convenience that continue to this day.

To celebrate the importance of ATMs in our everyday life, World ATM Day will take place on 27 June – 54 years to the day that the invention became reality.

It was on 27 June 1967 that the world’s first semi-automated cash dispenser – developed by De La Rue and later to be known as the Automated Teller Machine – was unveiled by Barclays Bank at its North London Branch in Enfield.

Over half a century later, this humble machine can now be found at over 3.2 million locations around the world, with many having transformed into sophisticated deposit-taking, cash recycling, currency converting, video-linked financial services hubs capable of replacing bank branches. Despite recent closures, the overall number is growing.

‘Some of these ATMs are pretty extreme,’ said James Shepherd-Barron, son of the ATM’s ‘inventor’ and founder of The ATM Appreciation Society.

‘Did you know’, he said, by way of example, ‘that the world’s smallest ATM is on a bagel stall in New York City? Or that the world’s ‘wettest’ is in County Cork, Ireland and that floating ATMs are used in flood relief operations in Pakistan? Did you know that ATMs contain up to 32 sensors, some of which are capable of monitoring behavioural biometrics to the point that kidnapping and human trafficking can be thwarted? Or that they can monitor the spread of communicable diseases such as COVID-19?’ ‘Half of the adult world is forced to rely on cash,’ he went on. ‘To many of them, the ATM is not a luxury; it is indispensable. Yet, at the same time, it is so under-appreciated. We walk past them every day but don’t stop to reflect on how crucial they are to the way most of the world still lives.’ It was because of this that he founded the ATM Appreciation Society to celebrate what is actually the world’s original ‘fintech’ and to highlight the pivotal role cash machines play in reducing disaster risk and enhancing financial inclusion. ‘I also wanted to highlight the awesome technologies involved, not just in the machine but in the cash it contains’, he said.

World ATM Day is an annual ‘birthday’ celebration, to be held on 27 June every year. For this inaugural World ATM Day the focus will be on the world’s ‘Most Extreme ATM’. The industry, the public, indeed anyone, is invited to post photos they may have of ATMs that are in some way unusual (because of where they are, what they look like or what they offer), comment on those already listed and, at the same time, vote on their favourites.

For more information, visit https://theatmappreciationsociety.org or contact info@theatmappreciationsociety.org.