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Australia's ATM industry has launched the first major study of itself as it moves to a new cardholder payment model in 2009. Beginning in March, ATM networks will charge cardholders directly for ATM withdrawals, similar to what is what is done in Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom, says Mangala Martinus, senior consultant for the Edgar, Dunn & Company, the management-consulting company overseeing the study from Sydney, Australia. For example, when a cardholder withdraws cash from a competing bank's ATM, the bank would charge a surcharge fee, Martinus tells CardLine Global sister publication ATM&Debit News. The cardholder's bank also would have the option of charging its customer a foreign fee for withdrawing cash from a competitor's ATM. The "direct payment model," as Australia's ATM industry officials call it, would replace an indirect one where the transaction acquirer charges the bank a fee for a non-customer's cash withdrawal. The bank then charges the customer, Martinus says. The "Australian ATM Market Study 2008" will provide a comprehensive market analysis of the country's ATM industry, Martinus says. The study also will determine how direct payment affects ATM withdrawal volumes, providing the first Australian ATM industry benchmark. First Data Corp., owner of Cashcard, Australia's largest ATM network, and Credit Union Services Australia Limited, the leading provider of financial services to the country's credit unions, endorsed the study. NCR Corp., Diebold Inc. and Wincor Nixdorf International GmbH, the world's three-largest ATM manufacturers, are sponsoring the study along with the ATM Industry Association, a trade association with members in 50 countries. Australia's major bank groups also are backing the industry examination. Australia's ATM industry elected to move to direct payment after the Reserve Bank of Australia, the country's central bank, criticized the current system as keeping ATM industry closed to new entrants. As of June, there were 25,559 ATMs in Australia, according to the Australian Payments Clearing Association. Edgar, Dunn will release the study's results in November, Martinus says.
