Review of FOC Online 2021
Future of Cash – Today’s Challenges, Tomorrow’s Opportunities
The last year has accelerated a number of payment trends, with the cash ‘paradox’ to the fore (cash in circulation up, cash transactions down). The Future of Cash conference laid out and explained the growing pressure on cash but also gave good data, examples and food for thought about opportunities for the future.
With international travel still interrupted, a virtual Future of Cash conference was held online ahead of the real thing 9-10 November in Madrid. The conference was structured with four sessions over two days.
The first session set the scene with presentations from the Bank of Spain, the European Central Bank (ECB) and the Dutch National Bank (DNB). The impact of the pandemic on cash in Europe was described and the DNB gave the context and plan for their detailed study, in conjunction with McKinsey, investigating future options for cash given its sharp decline in the Netherlands.
Across Europe cash usage is varied, but virtually all countries have seen significant changes in the past 12 months. The ECB’s surveys gave rich detail of all this, with less cash a clear trend.
The second session, ‘The World After’, fittingly picked up from the second session to consider possible future scenarios. Demos Helsinki fed back on the work done in the May 2020 workshops. Alex Bau described the situation in the US based on their own survey work, and how the Federal Reserve is responding. Glory talked through what they describe as Cash 4.0, and the earlier phases, giving good detail about how innovation can support efficient and safe cash handling that works for consumers and retailers.
Session three went deeper into the ‘Next Gen Cash Cycle’. The European Payment Council presentation was rich in detail, giving a data driven understanding of why cash recirculation is so important. Ron Delnevo echoed this with a focus on driving down costs by keeping things local. BNP Paribas Polska described the reality of running an ATM system both generally, but particularly in the last year. Finally, the British Retail Consortium gave a seldom heard voice, that of the retailer. ‘Don’t assume that cashback will work unless the retailer gets an income’ was one clear message.
The final session was about ‘CashTech’, a term first coined by Guillaume Lepecq, the conference Chairman. Four companies presented their solutions – viafintech, Shrap, Sonect and OneBanks.
Viafintech and Sonect work to make cash available, although with different solutions and business models. Shrap offers a solution that every mint in the world will loathe, an alternative to coins. And OneBanks looks to offer a branch kiosk that is bank agnostic for supported transactional bank branch activities.
The flow of the agenda worked well, providing a coherent story of today’s cash challenges and tomorrow’s opportunities. Each session had excellent question and answer sessions led by Paul Blond and Guillaume, with enough time to address all questions properly and carefully.
It may not have been face to face, but this was time well spent.
If you attended FOCO 2021 and would like to watch the on-demand recording of the event please use this link.
The virtual conference functioned very well
Choice of topics and speakers. And the perfect and timely organisation.
Good pacing, good audience engagement, solid substantive content.
The last session was the best.
2021ATTENDEES
ANZ Banking Group
Australia
Apprich Secur GmbH
Germany
ArtaZn
USA
ATM Industry Association
USA
ATMIA
USA
Banca d’Italia
Italy
Banco de España
Spain
Banco de Portugal
Portugal
Bank of Uganda
Uganda
Bank of Canada
Canada
Bank of Finland
Finland
Bank of Israel
Israel
BNP Paribas Polska
France
British Retail Consortium
United Kingdom
Bundesdruckerei GmbH
Germany
Cash Essentials
Switzerland
Cashway
France
Central Bank of Lesotho
Lesotho
Central Bank of Seychelles
Seychelles
Central Bank of Sudan
Sudan
Chuo University
Japan
CPI
United Kingdom
Crane Currency
USA
Crane Payment Innovations
USA
De Nederlandsche Bank
Netherlands
Demos Helsinki
Finland
Deutsche Bundesbank
Germany
Euro Automatic Cash
Spain
European Central Bank
Germany
European Payments Council
Belgium
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, CPO
USA
Federal Reserve Board
USA
FMA Secure
Chile
FMASecure
Chile
G+D Currency Technology Iberia SL
Spain
Geldmaat
Netherlands
Giesecke+Devrient Currency Technology GmbH
Germany
Glory Global Solutions
France
James Shepherd-Barron
United Kingdom
JCM Global
Japan
Koenig & Bauer
Switzerland
Koenig & Bauer Banknote Solutions
Switzerland
LINK ATM Scheme
United Kingdom
Loomis
Spain
MNB (Central Bank of Hungary)
Hungary
Monea Coin Technology
Spain
MPT Security Zrt.
Hungary
Mühlbauer GmbH & Co. KG
Germany
National Bank of Belgium
Belgium
NatWest
United Kingdom
Newcastle Business School
United Kingdom
Oesterreichische Nationalbank
Austria
OneBanks
Scotland
Orell Füssli Ltd
Switzerland
Orell Füssli Security Printing
Switzerland
Orfix
France
Prosegur
Spain
Reconnaissance International
United Kingdom
Reserve Bank of New Zealand
New Zealand
Röhrs and Associates
South Africa
Royal Bank of Scotland
Scotland
SBV Services (Pty) Ltd
South Africa
Shrap
United Kingdom
SICPA
Switzerland
Sonect
Switzerland
Swiss National Bank
Switzerland
The Blond Group
Australia
UNESCO
France
viafintech
Germany
Weiden Technical University of Applied Sciences
Germany
WSBI-ESBG
Belgium
17 February 11:00 – 13:00 GMT Session 1: Setting the scene
Introduction and Objectives: Guillaume Lepecq, CashEssentials
Adapting to the Evolving Cash Landscape
- The evolution of the cash landscape
- New ways to facilitate access to cash
- Optimising NCB cash distribution scheme
Concha Jimenez, Banco de Espana
Cash usage in the Euro Area, Pre- and Post Covid
- The ECB Study on the Payments Attitudes of Consumers in the Euro Area
- Cash demand during the pandemic
- The Eurosystem’s retail payments and cash strategies
Ton Roos, European Central Bank
The DNB Investigation into the Future Cash Cycle
- Cash Remains Essential
- The financial infrastructure is under pressure
- Designing a socially efficient, robust and safe cash infrastrcture
Roel van Anholt, De Nederlandsche Bank
Panel Discussion and Q & A
17 February 14:00 – 16:00 GMT Session 2: The world after: The Future of Cash Workshop
How can we imagine the Future of Cash?
- An introduction to Futures Literacy
- 5 tensions that will shape the future of cash
- Plausible and desirable scenarios
Petteri Lillberg, Demos Helsinki
How the Fed is Planning for the Future of Cash
- Environmental scan of the US: cash is not going away; however, how it is used is changing
- The Fed’s perspective on what these changes mean to its FedCash mission
- How will the Fed accomplish these strategies?
Alex Bau, Cash Product Office Federal Reserve Bank
Cash 4.0 – The Evolution of the Cash Cycle
- What have been the different stages of the cash cycle over the years, and how have they evolved?
- Who are the key players, and how have their roles changed?
- Where are we now, and where is the cash cycle heading?
- Who could bring the next Disruption to the Cash Cycle?
Zennan Green, Glory Global Solutions
Panel Discussion and Q & A
18 February 11:00 – 13:00 GMT Session 3: Next Gen Cash Cycle
Improving the Efficiency of the Handling of Cash: the EPC “Recirculation Paper
- The cash cycle – possibilities to optimise via local recirculation?
- The European landscape – a multifaceted picture.
- Examples of local best pest practices.
- What could stakeholders in society do to foster recirculation?
Diederik Bruggink, European Payments Council
Local Delivery of Cash to the Public – Keeping it Affordable
- In an age of convenience, how can cash be made available locally, so it can retain its place on the payment choice menu?
- Traditional ATM services can be expensive. Can Smarter, Next Generation ATMs expand services whilst lowering costs?
- With bank branches closing in almost every market, what alternative cash delivery channels are feasible?
- How is the local cash delivery landscape likely to look a decade from now?
Ron Delnevo, Cash and Card World
Branch ATM Network – BNP Paribas Poland Outsourcing Model
- How to offer best-in-class, modern self–service services to the customers with tight control on cost of cash and operations?
- A unique outsourcing model for the self–service network
- An optimal division of labour between the commercial outsourcer and the bank
Jerzy Porzucek, BNP PARIBAS Polska
Spread Too Thin? Cash Use: A View from the UK
- Changing picture of cash usage in UK retail
- Maintaining a viable cash infrastructure
- Ethical considerations in access to cash
Andrew Cregan, British Retail Consortium
Panel Discussion and Q & A
18 February 14:00 – 16:00 GMT Session 4: CashTech Forum
CashTech: Taking Cash Forward
- Andreas Veller, viafintech
Change for the better: a coinless future for cash
- How digital can complement cash, rather than seeking to replace it
- The core attributes of physical currency that need to be preserved
- Embracing a ‘coinless’ model to optimise recirculation
Chris Forero-Slee, Shrap
Virtual ATMs – digitalizing customer journey around cash
- Introducing sharing economy in cash logistics to foster efficient cash recirculation
- A novel way to reduce “cost of cash” and keep it resilient in a digital world
Sandipan Chakraborty, Founder & CEO of SONECT
Cash and Open Banking. Worlds apart; but together can drive financial inclusion
- Increasing digital divide
- UK needs to go ‘back to the future’ to drive financial inclusion
- How open banking can improve the sustainability of cash
David Fagleman, OneBanks