RBNZ Community Cash Services Trial

Last month, we celebrated the 25th anniversary of the introduction of polymer banknotes in New Zealand. But all is not well with cash ‘down under’, with usage in rapid decline and the cash infrastructure in decline as well – both in response to falling demand and also a driver for it.

New Zealand is by no means alone in this conundrum. Neighbouring Australia is in a similar place, as are several other countries around the world. The difference is that the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) is taking action. In 2021 it carried out a public consultation on the future of money, which showed overwhelming support for cash. It then published a detailed report with proposals on redesigning the cash cycle.

The RBNZ is now about to implement a key proposal of that report, as explained by Ian Woolford, Head of Money and Cash, at the recent Cash Sustainability Forum, in his presentation on the country’s impending community cash services trial.