Access to cash Cash access services
The Act intends to protect access to cash by ensuring the reasonable provision of cash withdrawal and deposit facilities.
	The Act appoints the FCA as the lead regulator for access to cash. HM Treasury will be empowered to designate firms to be subject to FCA oversight for the purpose of ensuring the reasonable provision of cash access (i.e., cash withdrawal and deposit) services across the UK, or parts of the UK. HM Treasury will consider the following factors for designation decisions: a firm’s geographic coverage; distribution of customers; and market share. On the basis of these criteria HM Treasury expects the firms it will designate will be larger banks and building societies. HM Treasury will also be empowered to designate operators of cash coordination arrangements for FCA oversight.
	The FCA will be granted monitoring, supervision and enforcement powers to regulate the provision of cash facilities by designated banks and building societies. These powers will also apply to any designated operators of cash coordination arrangements. Organisations that are involved in the provision of cash facilities but are not designated by HM Treasury will be subject to FCA powers relating to obtaining information only.
	The FCA’s powers will equip it with the ability to address cash access at both a national and local level. This includes seeking to ensure there is reasonable provision of free cash access services for relevant personal current accounts. The Act provides the FCA with the ability to impose requirements (including both rules and directions) on one or multiple designated banks and building societies, or designated operators of cash coordination arrangements, to require them to take such action as needed to ensure that there is reasonable provision of cash access services (including free access to relevant personal current accounts). This is in order to support the ongoing use of cash. The Act enables the FCA to take account of the impact on persons, even where there is no relationship between the designated firm and the person. By way of example, it does not make FCA activity dependent upon whether a designated firm has customers residing in any given area, in recognition of factors such as that customers may access cash as they travel or change provider. The actions that the FCA requires firms to take may include refraining from the closure of a cash access service where there is no suitable alternative.
	The Act requires HM Treasury to prepare a policy statement on cash access services(to include policies concerning free cash access services for holders of relevant personal current accounts,)] and enables HM Treasury to structure its policy statement on the basis of baselines for withdrawal and deposit facilities, rural and urban areas, and for different types of current account such as those for personal and non-personal customers. The FCA will be required to have regard to the policy statement in carrying out its functions. The Act also allows the FCA to take other matters that it thinks appropriate into account. This could include, for example: the type of service, and associated factors such as hours of availability; where the services should be provided; and cost, both in terms of provision and charges to end users.