Australia’s cash economy just got a stay of execution – and seniors across the country are breathing a sigh of relief.

In a move that’s being hailed as a win for those of us who still like to carry a bit of “real money”, the nation’s biggest banks and retailers have teamed up to throw a $50 million lifeline to Armaguard, the company that literally keeps cash flowing around Australia. It’s an unprecedented act of cooperation in a time when tap-and-go payments rule the roost.

So, what’s going on, and why should you (especially if you’re over 60) care? Let’s break it down.

A Lifeline to Keep Cash Moving​

In late June 2024, a remarkable deal was struck: the “big four” banks – Commonwealth Bank, Westpac, NAB and ANZ – joined forces with retail heavyweights Woolworths, Coles, Bunnings (via parent company Wesfarmers) and even Australia Post to bail out Armaguard.

Together, they pledged monthly payments totaling up to $50 million over the next year to keep Armaguard afloat. Why? Because Armaguard isn’t just any company – it’s basically the company that transports and distributes our banknotes and coins nationwide. If you’ve withdrawn cash from an ATM or gotten change at a shop, chances are Armaguard delivered it there.



This rescue isn’t a no-strings-attached gift; it comes with conditions. Armaguard must meet efficiency and restructuring targets to unlock each monthly payment.

An independent forensic accountant will be watching the books to make sure the bailout money is used for fixing Armaguard’s operations – and not siphoned off to its wealthy parent company, Linfox. In other words, the banks and retailers want to see improvements, not just handouts.

Still, the very fact that banks and big retailers – usually fierce competitors – are uniting like this is extraordinary. “No other nation has major banks, retailers and key distribution companies working together to achieve a more efficient cash-in-transit industry,” observed Armaguard’s Executive Chairman Peter Fox. In plain terms: it’s pretty much unheard of for all these big players to team up, which shows how high the stakes are.

Extended Funding Through 2025​

As the initial one-year rescue period neared its end, pressure mounted to prevent a shutdown of Armaguard’s cash network. The Transport Workers Union warned early in 2025 that “there are over 1400 jobs on the line here and vital services for significant parts of our community” if Armaguard were allowed to failt.

In response, Australia’s major banks and retailers negotiated a funding extension to carry the company through the rest of 2025. In July 2025, the Big Four banks – ANZ, Commonwealth Bank, Westpac, and NAB – together with key retail and logistics partners (Australia Post, Coles, Woolworths Group, and Wesfarmers) agreed to inject an additional $25.5 million into Armaguard, extending its lifeline from July until December 2025.

The new funding ensures Armaguard can continue operating nationwide through the end of the year, averting an immediate cash distribution crisis. The bridge financing was arranged as an interim measure to “buy time” while longer-term reforms are put in place. It effectively prevents a scenario in which Armaguard’s shutdown could have disrupted cash deliveries to banks, ATMs, and stores across the country and jeopardized hundreds of jobs in the process.

Why Was Armaguard in Trouble?​

To understand why Armaguard needed saving in the first place, we have to look at how our relationship with cash has changed. A decade or two ago, cash was king – but now, digital payments are ruling the realm. In 2010, about 60% of purchases were made with cash; by 2022, that plunged to just 13%.

Think about it: most people under 40 today probably carry more cards (or just a smartphone) than cash. The rise of tap-and-go cards, phone payments, and online shopping means less demand for the physical dollars and cents.

For Armaguard, which makes its living transporting cash, this trend was disastrous. The less we use cash, the less profitable it is to run fleets of armoured vans delivering money to every corner of Australia. They still have to drive to remote banks or ATMs, but now often carrying smaller loads of cash – and that’s expensive.

The company warned repeatedly that declining cash use was making its business unsustainable. In fact, Armaguard’s CEO at one point sounded the alarm that if things kept going south, Aussies might literally struggle to get their hands on banknotes when they need them.



To survive, Armaguard tried to adapt. In 2023 it merged with its only major competitor, the Spanish-owned Prosegur, after pleading with regulators that neither company could survive the rapid decline in cash usage. The competition watchdog (ACCC) gave the green light, despite the merger creating a near-monopoly (Armaguard now handles about 90% of Australia’s cash transport). The hope was that by joining forces, they could cut costs and keep the cash network running.

But even after gobbling up its rival, Armaguard couldn’t escape the cash crunch. By early 2024 – just a few months post-merger – Armaguard was back at the table saying it still couldn’t maintain the same level of service at the same price if cash use kept shrinking. Essentially, the writing was on the wall: if nothing changed, Armaguard risked going under, leaving Australia with no nationwide cash distributor. For a modern economy, that’s almost unthinkable – it would be like all the fuel tankers shutting down, but for money.

Emergency talks kicked off. The Reserve Bank, federal Treasury, the ACCC, banks, retailers – everyone huddled to figure out how to prevent a cash access crisis. Early in 2024, the banks and some retailers (Coles, Woolies, AusPost) offered Armaguard a smaller bailout – about $26 million – but Armaguard rejected it.




Why reject free money? Well, that deal came with heavy conditions: Armaguard felt it would have had to spill too much sensitive information about its operations, which it wasn’t willing to do. Instead, Armaguard’s parent company (Linfox, owned by billionaire Lindsay Fox) tried to plug the hole with $10 million of its own money. But that was just a Band-Aid on a pretty big wound.

By mid-2024, it was clear a bigger, coordinated fix was needed – hence the $50 million lifeline we opened with. Notably, the ACCC (competition regulator) had to bless this deal too, because normally competitors collaborating on money matters raises anti-competitive red flags. (The ACCC is keeping a close eye to ensure this rescue doesn’t lead to price gouging or other funny business.)

The deal has been submitted for approval, and the ACCC expects a formal application to rubber-stamp the temporary arrangement. In the meantime, they’ve also quietly allowed banks and retailers to start “business continuity” planning – i.e. figuring out what the heck they’d do if Armaguard did collapse one day.

Cash Still Matters – Especially for Seniors​

You might be thinking: Alright, so cash use is plunging. Does it really matter if we become a cashless society? For a lot of people tapping their phones at the cafe, maybe not. But for many seniors, rural Aussies, and others on the margins, cash is still a lifeline. In fact, those who rely heavily on cash tend to be older Australians or lower-income households. If you’re over 60, there’s a good chance you grew up handling money – and you might still feel more in control of your spending with physical dollars. There’s nothing quite like counting out notes to know what you’ve got.

The stats tell the story. Even though overall cash transactions have dwindled to that ~13% level, about one in five Aussies over 65 still use cash for the majority of their purchases. And a Reserve Bank survey found 25% of people would face serious inconvenience or worse if they couldn’t easily get cash. That’s one in four Australians who aren’t ready to ditch notes and coins. Imagine if ATMs disappeared or shops stopped accepting cash – a quarter of us could be in a world of hurt or, at minimum, very major inconvenience.

Why the dependence on cash? Partly, it’s about comfort and trust. “The move towards a ‘cashless society’ is disproportionately impacting seniors who struggle with technology and online banking,” says National Seniors Australia, noting many older people fear the maze of apps and PINs and the ever-present risk of online scams.



Cash doesn’t crash – it doesn’t freeze up if you forget a password or if a server goes down. And when you pay in cash, there’s no chance of being hacked or having your card skimmed. For folks who aren’t tech-savvy, “cash is all they’re familiar with, and is their only way to make purchases”.

Security is a big factor too. We’ve all heard of seniors falling victim to phone scams or card fraud. Using cash can feel safer – you can’t click the wrong link with a $50 note, after all. National Seniors points out that older Australians (and some remote Indigenous communities) are among the most vulnerable to scams, so sticking to cash transactions can actually offer peace of mind.

Then there’s budgeting. Ever handed a teenager a $100 bill versus letting them loose with your credit card? Big difference. Many seniors will tell you they manage their money better with cash – seeing coins and notes leave your hand makes you think twice about spending.

There’s research backing that up: people often spend less when using cash because the “pain” of parting with physical money is greater than a mere tap of a card. In these times of cost-of-living pressures, some find that withdrawing a set amount each week helps avoid overspending. As one National Seniors report put it, cash can encourage smarter spending, which is handy when every dollar counts.



And we can’t overlook access issues. Not everyone has reliable internet or mobile coverage, especially in rural and remote parts of Australia. For those communities, digital payments aren’t just intimidating – they can be downright impossible. Some remote towns have sketchy broadband; some people might share a single community smartphone, or rely on a basic handset with no fancy banking app. If you live out bush or on a far-flung property, cash might be the only form of payment that doesn’t let you down when the signal drops.

Plus, consider emergencies. Picture a cyclone or bushfire knocks out power and internet for days – how do you buy fuel, food, or batteries? Cash in hand could literally be a lifesaver. This isn’t hypothetical: in recent times, Australia has seen power or telecom outages (like that major Optus outage, remember that?) disrupting EFTPOS machines and ATMs.

National Seniors has highlighted cases like a huge blackout in Europe last year that “disabled electronic payment systems” and left retailers and shoppers scrambling until power was restored. These incidents reveal “the fragility of digital infrastructure and electronic payment systems”, underscoring the value of cash when high-tech fails. It’s a classic backup plan – Plan C, if you will (Cash!). As the National Seniors CEO Chris Grice says, while we know society is going mostly digital, “it’s important to consider the needs of those who rely on cash, particularly seniors”.

In other words, going cashless might be inevitable in the big picture, but we shouldn’t leave seniors – or anyone else – stranded along the way.

Banks and Retailers: Strange Bedfellows to Save Cash​

Let’s circle back to those unlikely allies – the banks and big retail chains – who ponied up the million-dollar rescue. What’s in it for them? On the surface, it might seem puzzling: banks have been nudging us toward digital banking for years, closing branches and ATMs, promoting their apps. Big supermarkets love it when you tap your card (it speeds up queues and you’re likely to spend more per visit). Why would these giants spend millions to prop up a company that circulates cash?

The short answer: they need Armaguard (or at least the service it provides), just like we do. If Armaguard collapsed, the banks would have a nightmare scenario on their hands: How to get cash to the ATMs that are left? How to supply their branches (those that remain) with notes, or collect cash from businesses? They’d have to scramble to find a new cash courier or invest in doing it themselves – neither of which is cheap or easy, especially overnight.

The spectre of a cash distribution meltdown also spooked the banks because of potential public panic. If people heard “the cash trucks aren’t running,” it could trigger hoarding of cash or even a run on withdrawals – precisely what you don’t want in a stable financial system. In a way, the banks are insuring against that chaos by keeping Armaguard alive.



For retailers like Woolies, Coles, and Bunnings, they deal with cash daily – even if a smaller share of customers pay that way, it still amounts to millions of dollars across all their stores. That cash doesn’t teleport itself to the bank vaults; Armaguard (and similar services) pick it up, count it, and move it safely.

If Armaguard vanished, big retailers would be stuck with a logistical and security headache of managing cash deposits and change deliveries nationwide. Coles actually started preparing for an Armaguard collapse earlier in 2024: at one point it stopped cash deliveries to its supermarkets and slashed the amount of cash customers could withdraw at checkout from $400 down to $200. Essentially, they began rationing cash services, bracing for the worst. (They later resumed normal operations after signs of the rescue deal, but they haven’t bumped that withdrawal limit back up.) That shows you how real the concern was – a company like Coles doesn’t inconvenience customers like that unless they see no choice.

Australia Post is another key player here. Many Australians, especially in rural areas, rely on post offices for banking services (thanks to the Bank@Post arrangement) – withdrawing or depositing cash at the postie because the nearest bank branch is hours away. Australia Post kicking in funds to save Armaguard makes perfect sense: if Armaguard folded, post offices might not get their cash deliveries, undermining one of the last bank-like services for regional folks. In short, all these organizations had strong business reasons (and some social responsibility) to ensure cash keeps circulating.



Now, interestingly, the government is also stepping up on the broader issue of cash availability. Treasurer Jim Chalmers has repeatedly reassured people that “we’re committed to cash” and that cash will remain accessible even if Armaguard went belly-up. And it’s not just talk: the Federal Government is actually working on laws to guarantee cash access. In December 2024, they floated a proposal to mandate that businesses accept cash for essential goods and services – things like groceries, fuel, basic clothing, medicine.

They plan to have legislation by 2026 requiring that big retailers can’t refuse your cash if you’re buying life’s essentials. The idea is to protect people who rely on cash from being left out as society digitalises. “We know people are increasingly using digital payments, but there is an ongoing place for cash in our society,” Chalmers wrote in the consultation paper, noting about 1.5 million Australians use cash for over 80% of their in-person transactions, and that cash is a vital backup during natural disasters or digital outages.

In that same paper, the government pointed out that 94% of businesses still accept cash right now, and they want to keep it that way. Mandating cash acceptance for essentials means “those who rely on cash will not be left behind”.



National Seniors Australia and other advocacy groups have cheered this move – they’ve been campaigning to “Keep Cash” for exactly these reasons. There are some wrinkles (like possibly exempting small businesses, which has raised some concern), but overall it shows a recognition at the highest levels that cash isn’t just nostalgia – it’s necessity for a chunk of the population. And now with the Armaguard deal, even private companies are acknowledging the same.

The Road Ahead: Is This Just a Stay of Execution for Cash?​

So, with Armaguard on financial life support (courtesy of the banks and retailers), what happens next? The company will be looking for ways to cut costs, maybe consolidating cash depots or using smarter tech. All parties – banks, retailers, regulators – will be meeting to hammer out a long-term plan for cash access. There’s even talk of setting up an independent pricing regime for cash transport, so Armaguard can’t suddenly hike fees on a whim down the track. Everyone wants to avoid being back in this same crisis a year later.

But let’s be frank: this could be a stay of execution rather than a full pardon for the cash system. The fundamental issue remains – Aussies are using cash less and less. Unless that trend reverses (and it likely won’t, barring some digital catastrophe), the cash network will keep shrinking. Armaguard’s bailout is a bit like keeping open a loss-making country hospital because the community depends on it, even though fewer patients are coming – admirable, necessary, but hard to sustain forever without changes.

One possible outcome is a sort of managed downsizing of the cash infrastructure. Banks have already been closing branches at a steady clip – over one-third of bank branches have shut since 2017, including many in regional areas, as more people bank online.


ATMs are vanishing too; Australia had about 14,000 ATMs in 2017, and by mid-2022 we had under 6,500 – a 60% drop. That number is likely even lower now. The fewer ATMs and branches, the less service points for cash – which can be both a cause and effect of reduced cash use. (It’s a vicious cycle: less demand leads to fewer ATMs, which makes cash less convenient, further reducing demand.)

Moving forward, we might see more consolidation: perhaps a shared ATM network rather than each bank running their own, or more reliance on Bank@Post at post offices for cash needs. The banking industry could also introduce small fees for certain cash services to offset costs – though that’d be unpopular, especially among seniors who’d feel penalized for using cash. On the flip side, maybe we’ll see innovations like “smart” ATMs or community cash hubs that reduce operating expenses. These are all ideas being tossed around as part of that long-term solution brainstorming.



For now, the good news is that cash isn’t disappearing overnight. The Armaguard rescue proves that even in 2024 (and into 2025), there’s a broad recognition that completely cashless is not an option – not yet, anyway. As National Seniors Australia put it, maintaining cash accessibility is not just about catering to a preference, it’s a matter of resilience and inclusivity. It’s about making sure a grandmother in a small town can still buy her groceries, even if she’s more comfortable with notes and coins than with an app; that a farmer can pay the farmhand in cash if the internet’s down; that all of us have something to fall back on if technology throws a tantrum.

This past year has also started a broader conversation. A lot of us probably hadn’t given much thought to what keeps our cash economy running until Armaguard hit the headlines. Now we know: it’s a delicate ecosystem of trucks, vaults, and agreements – one that needs care and coordination to sustain.

It’s heartening in a way to see banks and companies usually obsessed with digital innovation actually invest in old-fashioned cash for the public good (alright, and for their own operational stability too). Perhaps it’s a reminder that newer isn’t always better for everyone; sometimes the “old school” solution has merits you only appreciate when it’s at risk of going away.

Only time will tell if this lifeline is enough to future-proof cash distribution. As we head into the next years, Armaguard and its stakeholders have to invent a new normal – a downsized but resilient cash network that can serve those who need it, without bleeding money. It might involve tough choices like rationalising routes or introducing service fees, or even government support, but the goal will be the same: keep cash available for as long as Australians want to use it.




For seniors reading this, the takeaway today is a positive one: your ability to access and use cash has been protected, at least for now, thanks to this big rescue effort. You shouldn’t feel pressured to go digital before you’re ready – and if you prefer the jingle of coins and rustle of notes, you’ve got some powerful players in your corner agreeing that cash still has a place in Australia.

Finally, it’s worth remembering that money isn’t just an economic tool; it’s personal and cultural too. Many older Australians likely recall a time when pay packets came in cash, when Christmas club savings were counted out in notes, when a handshake and a tenner settled a deal.

Cash has a certain tangibility and trust associated with it, especially for those who’ve lived through decades of changing financial habits. That trust doesn’t evaporate simply because a smartphone can pay for your coffee now. In the end, whether you’re an avid tap-and-go user or a staunch cash loyalist, this Armaguard saga poses a question we all might consider: What would a truly cashless society mean for you, and are we really ready for it?

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