During the global CrowdStrike outage, ATM transactions in the UK surged by 30%, demonstrating cash as an essential backup. Link reported the increase, emphasizing the need for robust digital systems before society can safely go cashless.
Link said that overall, an extra £6 million was withdrawn from cash machines last Friday, though by the afternoon most payment systems had returned to full operation, limiting the uplift. Howells said: “Although [demand for cash] quickly dropped back as difficulties in shops were resolved, it shows the importance of cash as a fallback. In fact, our own research shows the most common reason people now carry cash is in case they can’t use cards, something more people may now do after last week’s events.”
![Withdrawal English Pound From The ATM](https://images.passle.net/fit-in/860x860/Passle/53304eb43d9474057cbfc02a/SearchServiceImages/2024-07-26-17-14-24-123-66a3d970e4547c2399cb2d05.jpg)