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The cash machine turns 40

June 27, 2007 by admin  
Filed under News, News-Banking

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On June 27th 1967 personal banking changed for ever with the opening of the world’s first cash machine in Enfield, North London.

The Barclays branch opened the first ever ATM so that customers could access cash outside of the bank’s normal opening hours.

Actor Reg Varney, star of popular sitcom On the Buses, christened the cash point and will always be remembered as the first person ever to withdraw money from a hole in the wall.

In those days, customers needed to feed a special voucher into the machine and enter a unique four digit code in order to gain access to a £10 note.

Principally, ATMs have not changed too much over the last 40 years but their popularity has soared.

By the end of the 1960s the UK had 595 cash points, while the world contained 781. By the end of 2006 there were 60,642 in the UK and 1.64 million across the globe.

“The cash machine, more than any other banking innovation, has had a major impact on the way we all conduct our lives, not just our banking,” said John Warren, head of cash machines for Barclays.

“Forty years ago cash was only available from 9-3 pm Monday to Friday and Saturdays from 9 -12.30 pm and, as cash was king, queues outside branches on a Saturday morning to get weekend money were common. Now you can get money any time, anywhere.”

The cash machine was invented by John Shepherd-Barron who had the idea while taking a bath after he had been prevented from getting his weekend money because he was late to the bank.

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