ING Bank Buys 1,200 NCR Cash-Recycling ATMs

ING Bank has purchased at least 1,200 NCR Corp. cash-recycling ATMs that are expected to play a key role in the financial institution's new branch design, which eliminates cash handling by employees. Brussels, Belgium-based ING is deploying the NCR SelfServ 34 model ATM in its Proxi branches throughout Belgium. Proxi is the name of ING Bank's new branch configuration. "All of the cash transactions, such as deposits and withdrawals, are handled at the ATMs, freeing bank employees to concentrate on bigger-ticket transactions, including selling insurance and loans," Paul De Grove, NCR sales and account manager, tells ATM&Debit News, a CardLine sister publication, Monday. ING has opened 250 Proxi branches in Belgium, and the bank so far has deployed 520 SelfServ 34 ATMs. Each branch has a minimum of two machines. The machines are equipped with cash-recycling and cash-dispensing modules, De Grove says. When a bank customer deposits bank notes into the ATM, the machine's cash-recycling module counts the funds, storing the banknotes inside its safe. The recycling module also dramatically reduces the bank's need to hire armored car companies to deposit cash into the machines each week. The bank will need the services of an armored car company every three weeks instead of every week, De Grove says. When funds in the cash-dispensing module have been depleted, the cash-recycling module continues to dispense bank notes, De Grove says. The ATMs hold 16,000 to 17,000 20 (US$29.89) and 50 (US$74.72) euro banknotes, he says. Although NCR announced it had signed an agreement to sell 1,200 ATMs to ING, the deal may be much larger, De Grove says. "We could sell as many as 1,500 to 1,600 machines," he says. NCR is based in the United States.