-The volume of euro notes in circulation has increased by 14.5% during the last decade
- There will be 3.5 million ATM in the world by 2017, thanks to trends in emerging countries
Madrid, 11th March 2013. - Cash is used for 80% of business transactions in Europe and will continue to be the most common means of payment in this region. Worldwide and despite the growth of new payment methods, cash accounts for between 70% and 99% of transactions. These are some of the conclusions reached during the international forum titled "Rediscovering the Essence of Innovation: A Window of Opportunity", organised by Prosegur in Madrid in order to discuss the latest advances and trends in the sphere of cash management and showcase the latest innovations in this field.
The seminar, organised for third year running, was attended by representatives from different banking institutions as well as companies from the retail and services sector. They shared this view and were optimistic about the future of cash. The forecasts coincide with the Retail Banking Retail (RBR) analysis, one of the entities at the event, which reveals that the volume of euro notes in circulation has increased by 14.5% during the last decade. On the other hand, the pound witnessed an increase of 6.8%, while the dollar registered growth of 5.4% during the same period.
During the forum, it was stressed that this upward trend would continue over the coming years, due among other factors, to the performance of the economy in emerging countries such as Brazil, China or India. Thus, for example, the number of ATMs worldwide will continue to grow up to 3.5 million by 2017.
These figures confirm the importance of integral cash management services in the current economic climate, which forces companies to adapt to new market requirements and to be more efficient in their resources and processes. In this respect, 68% of the organisations that attended the Prosegur event believe implementing cash management processes in their value chains to be a priority this year, while the remaining 27% intend to do so in the medium-term.
Furthermore, nearly half of the retail professionals are opting to include in their strategy the installation of cash centres in the shopping centres where they trade. They are thus committed to installing cash automation solutions that cover all the needs of the stores regarding their cash flows, such as collecting the takings and managing change. This type of procedures also enables operations to be optimised and strengthens the security and traceability of the cash.
On the other hand, the representatives of seven out of every ten financial institutions believe that their organisation could be involved in the cash automation model with the early credit mechanism, which enables the bank to value the takings in the machines without needing the security company - in this case, Prosegur - to have physically counted the money. The customer thus enjoys greater availability and return on its cash.
Prosegur, strategic partner in cash management
During the forum, Prosegur showcased successful cases of process efficiency, along with back-office and front-office cash automation solutions. The company, which manages 86% of the ATMs in Spain, is the first private security company to integrate all the activities relating to the entire cash cycle. Furthermore, it is committed to offering its clients a service that guarantees their security, supervising all the transactions carried out and assuming the commitment of its availability.
Prosegur Compania de Seguridad SA is a Spain-based company engaged in the provision of security services. The Companyâs activities are divided into business segments: Integrated Security Solutions (ISS), Cash in Transit (CIT) and Alarms. The ISS division provides surveillance and protection of premises, property and persons, as well as activities related to technological security solutions. The CIT division offers transportation, storage, safekeeping, counting and classification of coins and banknotes, deeds, securities and other goods that require special protection. The Alarms division comprises installation and monitoring of home alarms. The Company operates through numerous subsidiaries in Europe, Latin America, Asia, Africa and Australia. It is controlled by Gubel SL.
PROSEGUR COMPAÑÍA DE SEGURIDAD, S.A. 
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