A group of banking customers in Australia are feeling the repercussions of a shift toward a cashless society, according to a new report.
4,500 residents living in the town of Kununurra are now facing a 500 mile journey to the closest bank, reports Yahoo Finance.
The town, located in Western Australia, used to have brick-and-mortar branches and ATMs for Commonwealth Bank (CBA), NAB and Westpac.
But all three banks have now left, citing reasons like staffing and security, amid an industry-wide trend of reducing physical locations.
Residents say they had been clinging to a cash withdrawal option at the local supermarket Coles, which has now come to a halt due to overwhelming demand.
According to the most recent data from the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA), 424 bank branches were shut down between June 2022 and June 2023.
That’s 11% of all branches in the country.
In the same time frame, the APRA says banks removed access to 718 ATMs across Australia.
Australians held a rally on April 2nd to protest the mass closure of bank branches and bring attention to the country’s shift away from cash.
Amid the closures and concern, the nation’s big four banks say they have no plans to fully abandon paper money.
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