Credit Unions roll out cheap ATMs

New low-cost cash machines unveiled by the New Zealand Association of Credit Unions may buck banking trends in small-town New Zealand.

At the association's 41st annual conference in Hamilton, nearly 50 years after the first New Zealand Credit Union was set up, the automatic teller machines were introduced as an option for small towns abandoned by banks.

The machines, built by American manufacturer Triton, are intended as a low-cost alternative to New Zealand's costly bank-owned ATM systems.

The software was developed by a New Zealand Credit Union team of three at a cost of more than $100,000.

Two of the three are for internal use and the third is a hole-in-the-wall machine capable of being used anywhere in the community - a first for Credit Union members.

ATM manager Vic Martick said the machines were designed to be used in existing Credit Union offices and in areas where it was not feasible to set up a branch.

They would be installed in 15 Credit Union branches throughout New Zealand, starting with Hamilton, Auckland and Rotorua.

Martick said there were 30 further possible Credit Union branch sites and countless other possibilities for small communities.

But at this stage other bank cards could not be used on the machine.

The ATMs are based on a Microsoft Windows PC operating system and use the latest network technology, making them capable of staying online at all times.

"This enables faster transactions and a lower cost per transaction."

New Zealand Credit Unions will be the first financial institution outside the US to use the new ATMs.

Martick said the unions were the first independent ATM operator in New Zealand, reflecting an international trend away from strict bank ownership towards private control.

- NZPA