G4S : South Africa launches new banking technology

A new cash management device that has the potential to improve security, efficiency and customer service in banks has been launched by G4S South Africa.

The Bank Cash Accepting Device was developed over two years to meet the needs of customer Capitec Bank, and is now being launched into 30 branches.

Similar in function to G4S Deposita Cash Accepting devices already in use by retail customers, it is the first time this technology has been developed specifically for the banking sector in Africa.

Each time a customer enters a branch to pay cash into their account, the bank teller deposits the money in the device, which counts it, detects any fraudulent notes, provides the teller with an amount to credit the customer's account and then acts as a secure safe for the cash until it is collected.

'There is an increased desire for efficiency from banks that will give staff more time to serve customers rather than having to manually count bank-notes,' said Peter Van der Westhuizen, Director, Research and Development, G4S Deposita. 'This device will help to achieve that goal.

'By automating the process of depositing cash, it increases the speed of deposit transactions, minimises overheads and also reduces the cash-in-transit and processing costs by ensuring the cash is processed closer to the source.

'In addition to improving efficiency and reducing costs, this device also increases security - not only of the cash itself, which is stored within a secure safe - but also the branch staff and customers, by acting as a deterrent to potential robbers.'

The initial roll-out of 30 devices will continue through to the end of August, and follows a successful pilot programme in six branches over the past 10 months.

'The pilot was an opportunity to see the device function in a live environment, while introducing Capitec branch staff to the concept,' Peter added. 'The lessons we learned were valuable in developing the final version.

'Due to our experience as the market leader in South Africa for Cash Accepting Devices within retail, developing a similar device for banks was the next logical step.

'But it has still taken a huge amount of effort and development work to perfect.'

Critical to the success of the branch Cash Accepting Devices is the COPS teller processing system, which was purpose-built by G4S Deposita for the G4S Counting Houses (cash centres).

COPS forms an integral part of the end-to-end reconciliation between cash banked through devices and cash counted at the cash centres.

Essentially, the COPS system matches the Capitec cash banked through the devices to the actual counted values when received at the cash centre, and provides a detailed reconciliation per device that is distributed daily to the key stakeholders.

Marius Rautenbach, Head of Cash Management, Capitec Bank, said: 'We embarked on the deposit taking automation journey about six years ago.

'Since inception, G4S has been a key partner in this journey to develop a tailor-made solution, which can now be offered to the cash industry internationally.

'We're pleased to announce that this journey is almost complete and we are busy rolling out the final product to our branch network.'

He added: 'Time and volumes will determine if we have met our objectives, as client experience will be critical in the the evaluation of success.'

If the initial roll-out proves successful, Peter Van der Westhuizen revealed there is potential for more devices to be ordered, while discussions are also taking place with other customers.

'We're speaking to two other major South African banks,' he said. 'They have different requirements, but the G4S Deposita team is always up for the challenge and will ensure delivery to meet client requirements.

'We believe that the desire of banks to increase efficiency and security is not only confined to South Africa, and the Cash Accepting Device we have developed could certainly be adapted to meet the needs of international customers as well.'

The group is active in more than 100 countries*, and is quoted on the London Stock Exchange and has a secondary stock exchange listing in Copenhagen.

* Includes 44,000 employees in businesses in 15 countries that are being sold or exited.