Business cash deposits fall for Post Office

The Post Office has reported that business cash deposits were down 2% in December but remained above the £1bn mark at £1.09bn.

In contrast, personal cash withdrawals jumped significantly, up 6.7% to £892m compared with November (£836m).

In total, the country’s 11,500 post offices handled £3.3bn in cash deposits and withdrawals in December.

The Post Office has also attributed the fall in business cash deposits to newly introduced deposit limits that some banks have set as part of a tightening of money laundering controls.

This has resulted in limits on the amount of cash that some customers can deposit over the counter at post offices.

Martin Kearsley, banking director at the Post Office, said: “Small businesses are the backbone of the British economy.

“Over-zealous limits imposed on the amount they are able to deposit is resulting in more businesses no longer being able to accept cash, impacting both their ability to trade as they would like, as well as their customers who need or choose to budget using cash.

“They must remain able to deposit their takings locally, securely and conveniently without having to suspend or disrupt trading to make an ever longer journey to a distant bank branch to deposit their takings.”

The Post Office has also urged the government to make sure it protects the public’s access to cash, particularly with the continuing closure of bank branches.

Kearsley added: “Millions of people continue to visit their local post office to withdraw cash in order to budget and postmasters are playing a vital role in helping people, particularly those on low incomes, navigate this winter.

“In addition to cash deposit and withdrawal services, postmasters are processing tens of thousands of Energy Bill Support Scheme vouchers for prepaid meter customers every week.”

In 2022, £38.4bn in cash was deposited and withdrawn over the counter at post offices. This compares with £32.1bn in 2021.