This town in the Pyrenees-Atlantiques is fighting to keep its only ATM

In Aramits, the decision is not taken. For several days, this town of 500 inhabitants has been mobilizing against Crédit Agricole’s announcement to remove the city’s only ATM.

“Customers use a lot of cash every day, for newspapers, for a loaf of bread, for purchases that most of the time do not exceed 10 euros…”, reports Clément Luzineau, director of Aramits Intermarché, where he is installed the distributor. For residents, “it is very important to have a means of withdrawal close to where they live and not 3 or 4 kilometers away,” he adds.

Neighbors and merchants of Aramits denounce an aberration while the town attracts many tourists due to its geographical location: “We have many Spanish tourists (…) who pay in cash and I think that allows them to better manage their budget,” explains Annabelle, Intermarché cashier. According to the store manager, the distributor records up to 140 daily withdrawals on the busiest days.

The withdrawal of the distributor postponed

A petition demanding maintenance of the distributor has gathered around 1,500 signatures to date, France Bleu reports. For its part, Crédit Agricole justifies its decision by the “obsolescence” of the machine: “This is clearly a technical obsolescence, including computer obsolescence. We seek to find the best possible compromise and at the same time we care about maintaining this local service.” , says Thomas Guyonet, director of client operations at Crédit Agricole Pyrénées Gascogne.

A relief point system was proposed in a company without satisfying the residents. Crédit Agricole has indicated that it wishes to hold further discussions with the director of Intermarché to find a solution. Meanwhile, the dealer recall date has been postponed.

According to GIE Carte Bancaire figures revealed this week, the French remain attached to cash, and even more so in a context of inflation. After years of decline, amounts withdrawn from ATMs have increased 5% since the beginning of the year compared to the previous year. The number of distributors increased by 1%.