Not too long ago, the death of cash seemed inevitable and imminent. Banknotes and coins faced an array of enemies: private banks, fintech firms, telecoms companies, social media giants and credit card issuers. Even a number of central banks appeared to be turning their backs on cash.

The UK is an example of many of the challenges. At the beginning of 2019, there were 52,000 free to use automated teller machines in the UK. By March 2019, 1,700 had been converted to pay-to-use. Branch closures