ATMIA Announces Creation of U.S. Underbanked Forum

SIOUX FALLS, S.D.-The ATM Industry Association (ATMIA) announced today the creation of a new U.S. Underbanked Forum, to help foster development and deployment of ATM solutions addressing the needs of the unbanked and underbanked. Although explosive growth in the use of mobile devices for payments and banking services has dramatically improved consumer accessibility, there is still a need for more options that are not tied to traditional bank accounts.

“A 2012 ‘Forbes’ article referenced an FDIC survey indicating that 28.3% of U.S. households conduct the majority of their financial transactions outside of the traditional banking system” says ATMIA USA Executive Director, David Tente. “And contrary to what you might expect, that represents an increase of 821,000 households, compared to 2009 when they conducted their first survey. The need for ATM-based solutions targeting underbanked consumers is greater than ever,” Tente added.

The new Forum will serve as a vehicle for facilitating collaboration among the various ATMIA member constituencies, in an innovative and non-competitive environment. “The ATM is the perfect platform for linking traditional and non-traditional financial transactions, “ explains Tente. “And financial institutions, independent operators, networks, and processors all share a very high level of interest in creating new solutions to serve this market.”

Growing interest in cardless transactions at the ATM may also help accelerate the development of payment options targeting the underbanked; who generally don’t possess a debit or ATM card. QR code, one-time PIN, and other token-based applications are already being piloted in a number of U.S. markets.

ATMIA’s U.S. Underbanked Forum is scheduled to hold its first meeting on April 30, 2014. For more information about the Forum or ATMIA membership, contact Executive Director, David Tente ([email protected]).

About ATMIA
The ATM Industry Association, established in 1997, is a non-profit global trade association with approximately 4,000 members in 60 countries. As an independent, non-profit trade association, our mission is: to promote ATM convenience, growth and usage worldwide; to protect the ATM industry's assets, interests, good name and public trust; and to provide education, best practices, political voice and networking opportunities for member organizations. If you wish to join, please contact a member of the ATMIA team. Follow ATMIA: LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube.