NatWest is likely to impose new cash deposit limits next month, fueling activists’ fears of a cashless society.
The bank informed customers of the changes, which will go into effect on September 11, 2023, saying, “Protecting you from financial crime and fraud is very important to us.”
In a summary of the changes, NatWest said they will “make it clearer” that the bank can set limits on payments to and from the customer’s account.
These limits can apply to different types of payments, including cash deposits and withdrawals, and payments that the bank identifies as going to areas of “high risk of financial crime”.
The maximum amount of cash customers can deposit into their account at a bank branch, a Post Office or Cash & Deposit Machine (CDM) is £3,000 per day, and £24,000 in a rolling 12-month period.
In the update sent to customers, the bank said: “We monitor these limits, may change them over time and will make information on them available to you, unless there is a security reason that prevents us from doing so.”
Ron Delnevo, chairman of the Payment Choice Alliance, said he thought the deposit limits were “ludicrously low”.
He said: “Many small businesses operating as sole traders have cash takings well above the level NatWest is imposing. After all, you don’t have to register a business for VAT until your sales reach £85,000 in a year.
“These daft limits are being set to try to force small businesses to stop accepting cash.
“The banks definitely want a ‘cashless’ GB – they don’t care what the small businesses or the public – their customers – want.”
To decrease the danger of clients falling prey to fraud, most banks place daily limits on how much cash customers can withdraw from ATMs and how much money they can transfer from their accounts in a single transaction.
NatWest current account members can currently withdraw up to £750 per day from a cash machine. They can withdraw up to £20,000 from a branch without telling the branch first.