In the latest edition of its 2009 survey, "ATMs and Cash Dispensers Central and
Eastern Europe," Retail Banking Research Ltd. says the 15 countries it has tracked in CEE have once again shown exceptional growth. Over the last 12 months, the region's number of ATMs increased by 28 percent, and the number of new installations in the 15 countries studied was the highest ever.
The new RBR survey shows that a combination of economic growth and a rapid increase in the number of cards issued over the past few years has driven the expansion of many CEE ATM markets, most notably Russia, Ukraine and Poland.
For the eighth year running, the greatest absolute growth occurred in Russia, where an additional 19,000 ATMs were installed during the year; the country still has huge potential for expansion because of its large population and area. Heavy deployment by Russian banks over the past eight years has driven the market to 70,500 units. In 2008 Russia overtook France, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom to claim the mantle of Europe's largest ATM market.
Not only has Russia become Europe's largest ATM market, but Sberbank has become its largest deployer, increasing its installed base to 17,500 ATMs. Sberbank and the three other large Russian state-owned banks – Bank of Moscow, Gazprombank and VTB24 – accounted for one third of new ATM installations in Russia in 2008.
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