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Bristol to be cashless by 2035, says new research
UK card payment comparison website Merchant Machine has published research suggesting Bristol will be card-only by 2035.
Merchant Machine’s research, which looks at automated teller machines (ATMs) across constituencies and cities, suggests the best areas for ATM access currently are in London while the worst are in Buckinghamshire and Cambridgeshire.
In Bristol there are around 77 ATMs for every 100,000 people, placing the city ahead of places like Cardiff – with an estimated 73 per 10,000 – but behind London, which hosts 120 machines per 100,000 people.
is needed now More than ever
As the number of free-to-use ATMs drop across the country following a sharp decline in use, Merchant Machine’s forecasting model suggests that by 2035 there will be no more ATMs in Bristol.
If the website’s projection proves correct, this would make Bristol the fourth city to become cashless in Britain after Cambridge in 2033, Exeter in 2034 and Wigan in 2035.
Bristolians have raised concerns about the decline in use of ready money, including protest group Rebels on Roundabouts who last year marched on Gloucester Road calling for “no cashless society.”
The group identify as a “freedom collective” whose mission is to “share the truth and inform the public.” They have over 3,000 members on Telegram and primarily campaign against vaccines.
In 2019, academics at the University of Bristol’s Personal Finance Research Centre raised concerns about “deprived communities struggling” as cash becomes less common.
Main photo: Milan Perera
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