Financial platform operator Sonect has agreed to a deal with Lottomatica to implement a system that will allow lottery terminals in Italy to be used as ATMs, a system that could soon be operational in the UK.
Under a contract signed with the Italian authorities, Sonect will enable 35,000 Lottomatica lottery terminals to act as ATMs, allowing customers convenient local access to cash.
In the UK, 95% of the population live within one mile of a lottery terminal, leading Sonect to believe that its technology could provide a solution to the access-to-cash crisis currently ongoing.
According to research conducted by The Times, in association with Which?, over 4,000 bank branches have shut down in the last six years, and over 500 have closed since the pandemic began.
As a result, access to cash for most Britons is becoming more difficult. Yet, further research concludes that just 26% of Britons are in favour of a cashless society, leaving an unwanted gap in terms of cash accessibility.
Swiss-based Sonect has previously operated in the UK, having been the only overseas company chosen to participate in the Community Access to Cash Pilots.
The Fourth National Lottery licence competition will conclude in 2022 and the potential changeover is a good opportunity to modify the lottery terminals, according to Sonect.
Ron Delnevo, UK Director of Sonect, commented: “In the UK we’re under-utilising the potential of modern lottery terminals to provide a wide-range of services to customers of community retailers.
“The terminals can become a vital convenient local touch-point for access to cash and other services the public have a right to expect on their door steps.
“This is far too good an opportunity to waste. With the new National Lottery licence award coming soon, now is the time to ensure that there is a lottery terminal revolution when the fourth licence begins in 2023.”
