While digital payments like credit cards and mobile wallets continue gaining popularity, cash remains a preferred payment method for many consumers. In 2023, 58% of consumers said they prefer using cash for in-person transactions according to the Federal Reserve's Diary of Consumer Payment Choice.
For convenience stores, grocery stores, and other retailers that handle large volumes of cash, finding affordable and secure ways to manage that cash is an ongoing challenge. The three major costs of cash management are rising bank fees, labor expenses, and the risk of crime and loss.
Cash Recycling Systems Provide a Smart Solution
Implementing a cash recycling system like BANK IN A BOX can help retailers get a grip on all three of these cash management issues. Cash recyclers automate many of the manual tasks of handling, counting, and transporting cash while providing enhanced security features.
Tackle Rising Cash Management Fees
As both wages and interest rates continue rising, banks are regularly updating their business account offerings to cover increases in internal operational costs. Unfortunately, these fee hikes often get passed along to business account holders.
One common way banks are boosting revenue is by charging more for cash-handling services. For example, some banks now assess a $0.25 fee per $100 over $5,000 in monthly cash deposits or withdrawals. In a similar vein, provisional credit rates – the fees charged to credit a business account immediately for cash recorded as deposited in a smart safe or cash recycler before being verified – are also climbing as interest rates remain high.
Most cash recycling systems do little to help reduce escalating bank deposit and provisional credit fees. However, the BANK IN A BOX cash management system offers a unique solution that tackles both issues.
First, it relieves the retailer’s bank of any cash-counting requirements by converting the store’s deposited funds into ATM/financial kiosk cash complete with armored carrier pickup and handling. Cash withdrawn by consumers throughout the day is then credited directly to the retailer’s bank account just like standard ATM/Kiosk cash. Any remaining deposit funds are provisionally credited to the store’s account.
This process eliminates bank cash handling fees while significantly cutting, or even eliminating, provisional credit fees.
Slash Labor Costs with Automated Cash Handling
While cash remains popular with consumers, retailers pay a high price for all the labor involved in accepting, counting, securing, and transporting cash manually.
On average, it takes 14 minutes for an employee to accurately count and reconcile a cash register drawer by hand. However, automating cash handling with smart safes and cash recyclers drastically cuts down on this time-consuming task, letting staff focus on more productive work.
After implementing a robust cash management solution, one top convenience store chain reported saving 6 labor hours per store per week – that's over $300,000 in annual labor savings across their company. However, many of the affordable smart safe solutions available have limited time savings due to a single-note or limited note acceptance. Many even lack bill verification technologies.
The BANK IN A BOX cash management system takes these savings even further with automated bulk deposit and verification – up to 300 bills in 30 seconds - and consolidated armored carrier visits for cash deposits, change delivery, and ATM cash.
Cash Recyclers Minimize Losses from Theft & Human Error
Crime and internal cash losses due to human error continue to plague retailers. According to the National Retail Federation, robberies cost the industry over $50 million per year. Additionally, human mistakes in handling cash contribute to 16% of all cash losses retailers experience.
Cash recyclers help reduce the risk of these losses by:
- Securing cash in a vault until armed security picks it up
- Automating cash counting to prevent errors
- Limiting employee access and cash exposure
- Providing full cash tracking and accountability
The latest innovation, the BANK IN A BOX cash recycling system, takes security and loss prevention a step beyond. It completely automates the cash cycle – splitting large bills, supplying start-of-shift and additional register funds, and processing bulk store cash deposits, all within its secure compact footprint.
Even better, the machine recycles deposited cash back out of the system and into the hands of consumers who use the BANK IN A BOX as an ATM and financial kiosk. All of this means less cash is accessible in the store, reducing the risk of internal and external theft.
A Smarter Approach to Cash Management
Implementing a cash recycling solution is a wise investment for retailers looking to streamline their cash-handling processes while minimizing the rising costs and security risks of managing cash manually. By automating labor-intensive steps, reducing bank fees, and providing secure storage, cash recyclers enable a smarter, more cost-effective approach to cash management. And, of all of the cash management solutions on the market, BANK IN A BOX provides the most robust combination of security, savings, and innovation available today.
