Comparing the Hidden Costs of Cash vs. Cards Part 1 in this article series explored the various costs to the merchant associated with accepting credit cards. In this part, we pivot and take a closer look at cash acceptance costs. Insight – Card swipe fees have grown to become one of the largest operating costs for retailers, but… Read More »
In Depth Look at Costs for Cash and also Cashless Cash is not “free,” and cashless is not “simple.” The lowest-cost payment strategy depends on volume, risk profile, service design, and deployment scale — not headlines. Overview As self-service kiosks continue to replace staffed transactions across retail, QSR, government, healthcare, and unattended payment environments, one question consistently resurfaces:… Read More »
Buc-ees, DIA and Vending Market – Newsbit January 4 Buc-ee’s Removes Self Order Kiosks It looks like the self-ordering kiosks at Buc-ee’s have recently disappeared from locations across the country, which has sparked quite a bit of discussion! We reached out to officials at Buc-ee’s on the disappearance of the self-ordering kiosks, a media coordinator for the company simply responded “No comment”… Read More »
Cashless Kiosks and Cash Kiosks We were looking through the Target Center RFP and couldn’t help but notice that “cash” will not be accepted. Welcome to the world of “Cash Free”, mobile phones and contactless cards. We wonder if swipe will be supported almost. Given the sports teams that use the Target Center, they will have a “Court… Read More »
By: KIRO 7 News Staff Updated: February 11, 2020 – 5:20 AM SEATTLE — You won’t have to worry about digging around for change the next time you’re at CenturyLink Field. Starting Tuesday, all concession stands, retail, vendors/hawkers and on-site parking will only accept credit, debit and prepaid cards. Those who don’t have a debit or credit card… Read More »
Cash To Card Kiosk – Decathlon Introduces Cashless Retailing for All Self-Service Networks helps with their innovative gift card dispensing kiosk. EMERYVILLE, Calif., June 6, 2019 /PRNewswire/ — Decathlon, the self-proclaimed world leader in sporting goods retailing, recently opened their US flagship high-tech retail location in Emeryville, California. With more than 1,500 stores in 49 countries, Decathlon is making… Read More »
Excerpt from Restaurant Business 4/1/2019 Washington, D.C.-based salad chain Sweetgreen will also start accepting cash again at all of its 94 locations by the end of the year following backlash cashless stores have faced for excluding people without credit cards or bank accounts, the company said last week. ‘Going cashless had positive results, but it also had the… Read More »
Associated Press story published on Oil City News 5/12/2019 Editors note: There should be a way to accept cash without the usual liabilities and the usual ways. Cash for credit conversion machines for example. By ALEXANDRA OLSON and KEN SWEET AP Business Writers NEW YORK (AP) — Hembert Figueroa just wanted a taco. So he was surprised to… Read More »
OTI Brings Diverse Cashless Payment Solutions to Worldwide Merchants INTRODUCTION TO OTI On Track Innovations LTD, or OTI (NASDAQ: OTIV), is a pioneer and leading global developer of cutting-edge cashless payment solutions including near-field communication (NFC) products and solutions. For over two decades, OTI has provided enterprises worldwide with innovative technology and solutions that forge new business models, grow… Read More »
Fast-casual places are ditching cash for safety and efficiency. Critics say this shuts out poor people, some immigrants and those who just prefer cash.
Source: www.washingtonpost.com
The global cashless movement has reached Washington, where a growing number of fast-casual establishments and other spots are saying no to greenbacks in favor of plastic and mobile payments. Sweetgreen, the national salad chain founded by Georgetown University graduates, went cashless in most of its locations last year. Other cashless spots include a Menchie’s frozen-yogurt shop downtown, the posh Barcelona Wine Bar on 14th Street NW and the Bruery beer store at Union Market.
Soon, they may be breaking the law.
The decision to go cashless also has broader implications in the global battle between the credit-card and ATM industries.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, Visa has been a major booster of the cashless movement. The credit card company in March awarded 50 businesses $10,000 each for rejecting cash payments and has released reports touting the benefits of a cashless society.
The push back due to the unbanked was quite predictable. However, when you see a country like India has gone cashless in many spots — well, if they can figure out how to do it, we should be able to figure out how to do it. I believe even poor countries in Africa have large cashless segments now.
This really is not a battle of if, but rather when.
Half the customers didn’t know how to order on the iPad, a Google commenter wrote
Source: www.eater.com
Here is some insight on cash in restaurants. Shake Shack backed off of it but still is working towards cashless. The CEO reasons are:
Safety: We’ve mitigated the very real security risks associated with having large quantities of cash on-site, so we can become a safer place for our team and our guests.
Efficiency: We’ve streamlined our operations, eliminating cash-counting, and facilitating easier shift transitions (team members can jump on the register without the time-consuming security steps involved in cash-tray change-outs.)
Speed: Without handling cash and making change, we can serve more guests in far less time, meaning you spend less time waiting in line to place your order and pay.
Here is LinkedIn article from Meyer the CEO
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/why-were-going-cashless-danny-meyer/
TAGS: cashless vending, mobile payments, unattended payments, Ingenico Group, Ingenico unattended partners program, Self Series readers, Greg Burch, Vengo Labs, Steven Bofill
NEW YORK CITY — Ingenico Group said year-over-year shipments of its
Source: www.vendingtimes.com
minuteKEY is migrating 3400 of its self-serve, key duplication kiosks to USA Technologies’ Quick Connect, a secure API that enables the company to off
Source: www.businesswire.com
While other central banks ruminate on ways to replace cash with digital currencies, Sweden’s Riksbank is kicking against the grain with calls fo
Source: www.finextra.com
Signed by Stefan Ingves, the Riksbank Governor, the letter states that the banks have reduced their cash handling services too fast, resulting in a lack of cash services in less populated areas in particular, but for the public in general.
Mike Lee, CEO of the ATMIA, says: “This is a victory for common sense and for the future balance of the Swedish consumer economy and I’d like to congratulate the Swedish Riksbank for seeing through the mirage of anti-cash propaganda in the media to reveal the basic economic right of free citizens to choose their own payment methods at all times, whether cash or digital.”
The kiosk is currently in place at SACU’s De Zavala location, 12840 West IH-10. Source: www.bizjournals.com The kiosk was the result of a 12-month initiative by SACU to help in-branch customers conduct cashless transactions in real time. The kiosk integrates touch-screen and card scanning technology to create a convenient way for customers to perform transactions such as: viewing… Read More »
NAMA 2026 Preview — Vending Becomes the Backbone of Unattended Retail NAMA (thenamashow.org) continues to evolve from a traditional vending show into unattended retail, payments, and automated commerce. If NRF is front-of-house retail theater and HIMSS is clinical workflow, NAMA is where real-world monetization infrastructure gets built. Date: April 22-24 Location: Los Angeles This year’s show reinforces a… Read More »
NAMA Show 2026 in Los Angeles Has there ever been a more exciting time to be in the convenience services industry? Take a look at the education schedule for NAMA 2026 at the Los Angeles Convention Center, April 22-24. The capabilities introduced by AI and related technologies have unleashed extensive possibilities for delivering white glove quality service in… Read More »
The AI Layer: More Human, or More Extractive? On a long-enough timeline, every growth-minded restaurant brand seems to discover the same “big idea”: what we really need is a loyalty program. Very nice article by Jason Aten and Inc. Excerpt I suppose, on a long-enough time scale, every business comes to the conclusion that the thing it needs… Read More »
Trade Show Report It’s never a dull moment in the amusement business, but last week’s Amusement Expo International show in Las Vegas pushed the industry’s excitement into a higher gear. Attendees at the Las Vegas Convention Center indulged in a barrage of gamification innovations – personalization technologies such as immersive reality, AI holograms and avatars – that augment… Read More »
Why keeping cash in the mix still matters for consumers, small merchants, and the self‑service systems that serve them Scroll through the headlines and you’d think cash is already dead. Between mobile wallets, tap‑to‑pay cards, QR codes and “no‑cash” lanes, it’s easy to forget that simple paper money is still doing a lot of work in the background… Read More »
Good to Know Regarding Restaurants and Self-Service Kiosks, AI, Payments & the Modern Restaurant Stack Restaurants are no longer asking if they should deploy self-service—they are deciding how fast they can scale it. Labor pressure, rising costs, and customer expectations for speed have pushed digital ordering from “nice-to-have” to core infrastructure. Whether it’s a self-order kiosk in a… Read More »
High-Value Exhibitors for Kiosk / Self-Service Coverage Amusement Expo International 2026 takes place March 16–19 at the Las Vegas Convention Center, bringing together operators, equipment manufacturers, and technology suppliers from across the global amusement and family entertainment industry. Organized by the American Amusement Machine Association (AAMA) and the Amusement & Music Operators Association (AMOA), the event typically attracts… Read More »
What Was Notable at HIMSS 2026 No one questions the importance of healthcare (here is our Hub for healthcare fyi). Sooner or later, it becomes everyone’s primary concern. The automation explosion that is changing human activities by the day is transforming healthcare in more ways than many people recognize. Those who attended last week’s HIMSS 2026 Las Vegas… Read More »
Self-Service Technology Statistics (2026) Executive Summary Self-service technologies—including kiosks, self-checkout systems, digital ordering stations, and unattended retail platforms—have expanded rapidly across retail, restaurants, healthcare, airports, and government services. According to research compiled by TIG – The Industry Group, the global installed base of self-service kiosks is estimated between 8 million and 15 million units worldwide as of 2025.… Read More »
Premium research assets for operators, vendors, and investors in self-service, kiosks, automation, and retail technology. For the past several years, TIG – The Industry Group has published open analysis on self-service technology, cash automation, AI at the edge, regulatory developments, and retail systems infrastructure. What became clear in 2025 is this: The industry does not just need commentary.It… Read More »
How Vending is Driving Electronic Payments The unattended retail sector—spanning vending machines, micro markets, and smart stores—has rapidly evolved into a sophisticated, high-value retail channel powered by digital payments and automation. In vending automation, the big majority of cash payments are for small dollar items. And that is where the change is coming. Cashless payments removed the industry’s… Read More »
Weekly News Digest for Self-Service and Retail Tech ## Strategic Watch List & Financials Walmart ($WMT): Automation vs. Human Touch Walmart reached a $1 trillion market cap this month. Strategically, they are shifting 65% of stores to automated servicing but are notably reintroducing manned registers in select zones to combat “self-checkout friction” and shrink. Source: Walmart’s Omnichannel Strategy Diebold Nixdorf ($DBD): Strong 2026… Read More »
Optimizing Kiosk Uptime: A Guide to Service, Warranty, and TCO Kiosk services are the most underestimated pillar—and often the most critical. Installation, monitoring, break-fix, software updates, compliance audits, and field support determine whether kiosks deliver ROI or become operational liabilities. Kiosk Service Providers Service and Warranty Build a Field Service Offering Service Offerings Kiosk OEMs: Why They Matter… Read More »
Service and Vending Much has been reported about new capabilities of self service equipment thanks to technology, but when it comes to vending, one maxim has never changed since the time Hero of Tesibus is believed to have invented a coin-operated machine to dispense sacrificial water in ancient Egypt: Service makes the difference. In vending industry parlance, “service”… Read More »
Kiosks, Touchless, and Wayfinding at NRF NYC APNews and PRnewswire == By The Industry Group Published 10:28 AM MST, December 15, 2025 – Twenty different participating companies at the show available to meet – WESTMINSTER, Colo., Dec. 15, 2025 — See and meet The Industry Group and Kiosk Association at National Retail Federation Big Show in NYC in January at… Read More »
Should the Operator of a kiosk enable cash payment at their kiosks? Such a question appears to be broad – because it is – and irrelevant to some readers – because it is! Because just like “there’s an app for that”, there’s a kiosk for that; there is a wide application space for kiosks. Many kiosk categories won’t… Read More »
Independent ATMs 2025: Evolution Continues By Elliot Maras | October 8, 2025 0 Comment Bruce Renard, executive director of NAC, and Patrick Conner, chairman, welcome attendees to Las Vegas. NAC 2025 Serves Up Innovation In Las Vegas Attendees who converged on Caesars Palace for last week’s NAC 2025 conference and expo came in search of a better understanding of the role… Read More »
Introduction: Why Service Decisions Matter More Than Hardware Price Editors Note — This post has two main sections — Writer+AI and Writer Only — How AI inteprets and restructures out content, and then our native content before reprocessed by AI. In that sense we have two audiences — regular normal people and then the AIs. They have their… Read More »
Service Series — Small and Medium Business Options Kiosk Service Options for SMBs Upon deciding to deploy self-service kiosks, Small and Medium Businesses (SMBs) a critically important decision to make, and that is how to service the kiosk in the field post installation. While this decision might seem straightforward at first, it is a complex decision that starts… Read More »
Here is our free listing database External Links Digital Signage — digital-signage.blog + AVIXA xchange Payment & POS — kioskindustry.org Retail automation and Vending – retailsystems.org Edge computing like thin client, miniPC and media players (hardware as rule) Patient Kiosk Healthcare — patientkiosk.io New AI focus portals https://ai-computer.me https://automation-ai.org https://vending-retail.com https://voiceorder.net https://vending-ai.org Supplemental Menu Boards — menu-board.net EV Charging — ev-charging-stations.org Asia Group — kioskasia.org Europe… Read More »