Access to cash Wholesale cash distribution
To support continued access to cash, a sustainable and resilient wholesale cash system is needed. This is the UK’s infrastructure, including a system of cash centres, that is integral to the sorting, storing and distribution of coins and notes.
	The wholesale cash industry purchases banknotes from the Bank of England (the Bank) and coins from the Mint at face value. Wholesale Cash in Transit (CiT) providers then move cash from where it has been printed or minted to cash centres for distribution. Cash centres then receive, store and prepare cash for circulation to the public.
	The wholesale cash network is split across a number of cash centre operators. The decline in the transactional use of cash has put pressure on the business models of the wholesale cash network. While some operators have rationalised their cash centre estates and closed cash centres, utilisation of cash centres nevertheless remains low in some parts of the UK and there is little ability to reduce the fixed costs associated with running cash centres on an individual basis.
	None of the current operators within the wholesale cash industry are currently considered to be systemic, as others are able to step in, in the event of a failure of one of the networks. The government expects the industry will transition to a smaller overall network in the coming years. This transition could be through rationalisation of the existing networks, or consolidation of the number of networks and operators. If this restructuring happens in a disorderly way it could pose a potentially significant risk to the wholesale cash infrastructure’s effectiveness and sustainability, and consequently its ability to supply cash as and when required to the retail network across the UK. These risks need to be managed and it is the government’s view that it is not possible to do that through voluntary arrangements alone.