News in Brief

Removing Canada’s One Cent Coin

As countries such as Estonia consider dropping the 1 and 2 euro cent coins, and Slovakia begins the process of implementing rounding rules that will make the 5 cent the lowest denomination, it is coming up to ten years since Canada dropped its 1 cent (penny).

A recent survey by Research Co found 71% of the public did not miss the coin, with 19% disagreeing. Those aged 35-64 years old missed it most with only 65% supporting its abolition, while older people were 72% in favour. British Colombia was most wedded to the penny, again with 65% supporting its abolition.

Focus has now moved to the 5 cent coin, with 40% supporting its removal but 49% having reservations. Unlike the penny coin, the face value is still higher than the cost of production. Questions over its future have been raised periodically ever since the penny was dropped, but there are understood to be no plans to abolish it too in the near future.

Resilience and Sustainability by Koenig & Bauer

With the threat of Russia reducing, or even ending, gas supplies to Europe, Koenig & Bauer, of which Koenig & Bauer Banknote Solutions is a part, has taken steps to ensure that it does not rely on pipeline gas.

As of the end of July, it is using LPG, fuel oil and district heating instead of process gas at its major production sites. By 1 September the fuel supply for heating energy will have been modified. The risk of power grid fluctuations has led to Koenig & Bauer procuring high capacity mobile emergency power units to be used as required.

The long term goal is to be independent from fossil fuels and to generate as much energy for itself as it can. This will help Koenig & Bauer achieve its sustainability targets and, it says, builds resilience against energy market disruptions.

SICPA MOU with INX

Security ink specialist SICPA has signed an MOU with the INX Digital Company, a broker-dealer and owner of a digital asset trading platform, for the creation of a joint venture to help governments digitise their monetary systems.

Under the terms of the MOU, INX will work with SICPA to establish a blockchain solution for CBDC and supporting ecosystem to assist clients in bolstering monetary sovereignty and efficiently growing overall country GDP.

In particular, the two companies plan to expand interoperability between different stakeholders across borders through the joint venture, allowing governments to expand their access to payments infrastructure, facilitate cross-border payments, maintain sovereign currency control through rigorous regulation, and introduce privacy and safety measures.

‘In line with our purpose of enabling trust, our ambition is to develop with our partners a CBDC solution that is efficient, inclusive and safe, enabling trustworthy and privacy-preserving transactions for all, complementary to the use of cash,’ said Philippe Amon, CEO and Chairman of SICPA.

Glory Invests in Clip Money

Glory, a global leader in cash technology solutions, has announced its participation in the latest fundraising round by Clip Money, a fintech operating in Canada and the US that enables businesses to make deposits into their accounts through a national network of drop box locations in malls, major retailers and grocery chains.

Clip Money’s platform combines an app with a cloud-based transaction platform, secure connected cash deposit devices, and management software to deliver what it terms an end-to-end deposit solution to businesses, whoever they bank with.

According to the fintech, its service simplifies the challenges businesses face when depositing cash, operating outside typical bank branch hours and in convenient locations. The service also helps financial institutions extend the reach of their networks outside of branches without the associated costs.

Glory has made a number of investments in fintechs in recent years. Commenting on this latest funding, Toshimitsu Yoshinari, Chief Solutions Officer at Glory said: ‘increasingly we are seeing the combination of digital and physical shared infrastructure solutions to solve real world problems in new ways. As bank branches around the world continue to transform, moving to a more sales-centric model, we’re delighted to invest and commercially partner with Clip Money as they develop new ways to support deposit services for businesses that are not only more convenient, but which deliver a better customer experience.’ 

CO2 Neutral Energy for Hueck Folien

Austrian foil manufacturer Hueck Folien has erected a new 400 kWp photovoltaic Wp system on its Baumgartenberg premises, with an output equivalent to the energy consumption of 100 households.

The company has been supplied with electricity from renewable sources for several years, and its emissions are already close to zero. The new installation, comprising 900 modules, is intended to cover the peaks of electricity demand, and will save over 100 tonnes of CO2 per year.

Several charging stations for electrical vehicles have also been set up in the company car park for use by both customers and employees.

‘With exclusively CO2-neutral power supply, we are taking the next important step towards ecologically neutral production,’ said Dr Martin Bergsmann, CEO of Hueck Folien, adding that sustainability has been an important priority at Hueck Folien for years.

For example, the proportion of solvent-based varnishes has been reduced to less than 50%, and electricity consumption has been reduced in recent years by switching to LED lighting and the thermal insulation of vacuum pumps.

According to the company, lower electricity consumption and fewer business trips led to a reduction of the CO2 footprint by a further 3% in 2020 compared to 2019, despite higher sales.

Russian ATMs Can’t be Programmed for New Note

The introduction of Russia’s new 100 ruble is reported to have run into difficulties, stemming from western ATM and POS providers withdrawing from the county due to the war in Ukraine.

The so-called ‘patriotic’ new note – depicting the Kremlin’s Spasskaya Tower on the front and the Rzhev Memorial to the Russian Soldier on the back – has higher durability, an antimicrobial coating and upgraded security features.

Russia’s ATMs and payment terminals need to be reprogrammed to recognise the new notes, and this can take several months to do even in normal times. NCR and Diebold Nixdorf, who between them manufacture 60-70% of ATMs in Russia, have suspended sales, spare parts and servicing of Russian equipment, meaning that the new note cannot be issued or deposited in automated terminals.

There are around 185,000 ATMs in Russia. According to local reports, credit institutions are now scrambling to buy ATMs from China and Korea, although this could take several months.