ING revives cash with Viafintech

ING Germany is expanding its offer with a new service for current accounts. From 29 November 2022, "ING Cash" will give customers the opportunity to make deposits and withdrawals from their cheque accounts at over 12,000 participating business partners in Germany.

FACTS

• This new service allows current account deposits and withdrawals at over 12,000 participating merchant partners without the need for a card.

• The service was set up through a partnership with the German startup viafintech, part of the specialist payment platform Paysafe.

• Amounts involved:

  • The sum of cash deposits and withdrawals is a maximum of EUR 999.99 within 24 hours.

  • For payments, amounts from €10 to €300 are possible per transaction.

  • Withdrawals are free of charge for the bank's customers.

  • For deposits, ING Bank users are allowed to deposit amounts ranging from EUR 50 to EUR 999.99. A fee of 1.5% of the deposit amount will be charged.

• All users need to use the service is a current account and the Banking to Go app.

• Customer journey:

  • Users must select the "ING Cash" function and the deposit or withdrawal function directly in the application.

  • After entering the desired amount for the withdrawal or deposit, the transaction is authorised in the Banking to Go application.

  • A barcode is then displayed on the smartphone screen, which is scanned at the cash desk.

  • When withdrawing money, the customer receives the amount directly at the cash desk.

  • When depositing, the amount is given to the cashier.

  • The amount paid or deposited is then immediately recorded in the account and a push message is sent to users via the Banking to Go application.

CHALLENGES

• Maintaining a broad range of options: According to an ING Germany representative, the average number of cash withdrawals has decreased compared to the year before the coronavirus pandemic. In 2022, ING Germany customers used an ATM on average 2.4 times per month, while two years ago, in 2019, they still used it 3.7 times. Nevertheless, the ING Germany representative notes that bank customers appreciate the possibility of easily withdrawing and depositing cash when making purchases. With the "ING Cash" service, the bank offers a free solution that is largely adapted to customer needs.

• Online identification with the identity card: This new service is included in a new ING offer called "ING Bargeld", which also includes an online identification service. The identification process is based on the new eID identity card. The data is retrieved by means of two-factor authentication via a smartphone or a card reader. In order to use the eID function, the ID card with activated eID function, a common NFC-enabled smartphone and the installed Postident application of Deutsche Post are required.

MARKET PERSPECTIVE

• Against the current trend of digitalisation of services, these cash-back offers (not to be confused with the rewards programmes of the same name) are gaining momentum.

• Several players from different backgrounds, more or less threatened by the announced disappearance of cash, are implementing similar initiatives. Like Brink's, which has launched a new cash payment solution for e-commerce companies in partnership with French tobacconists in order to offer payment services within this network of everyday merchants.

• To cope with the decline in the use of their ATMs, banks are also looking for solutions. In the United Kingdom, for example, a vast association between commercial banks and the British Post Office has given rise to a project for shared banking hubs in the UK.