NCR Atleos, First Citizens lock arms

Dive Brief:

First Citizens Bank is partnering with NCR Atleos to offer surcharge-free access to services via ATMs located at some 2,000 Target stores, the bank said in a press release last month. As part of the agreement, the bank’s customers can use the ATMs at Target stores to withdraw cash, check their account balances and transfer funds to eligible linked accounts without paying a fee, according to the Oct. 19 release.
“The consumer banking experience needs to meet customers where they are through multiple channels, whether in-person or digitally enabled,” First Citizens Bank’s head of consumer banking, Michael Wilson, said in the release.
Meanwhile, NCR Atleos CEO Tim Oliver said Wednesday that the company’s sale to Brink’s is progressing, with expected completion of the transaction by January.

Dive Insight:

For NCR Atleos, which became a standalone company three years ago, the partnership with First Citizens allows it to add new service providers to its roster.

The company separated from its parent in late 2023, creating two publicly traded companies: NCR Voyix and NCR Atleos. While NCR Atleos offers ATMs and other interactive teller machines for payments and banking services, NCR Voyix offers point-of-sale hardware and related services to restaurant, retail and other merchants.

As NCR Atleos has grown its corporate clientele, including by working with American Express and PayNearMe in recent years, its self-service banking segment has bolstered revenue. The company reported third-quarter earnings results Wednesday that showed its self-service banking segment rose 3% to $2.17 billion for the first nine months of the year, faster than its overall business revenue growth, which increased 2% to $3.23 billion for the period, according to the earnings press release.

“Our service-led growth initiatives and investment in product innovation are encouraging financial institutions and retailers to choose our differentiated and comprehensive offering to meet their evolving self-service needs,” Oliver said in August when the company reported second-quarter earnings.

NCR’s partnership with First Citizens comes as the ATM provider prepares to be acquired. In February, the Brink’s Company agreed to buy NCR Atleos in a cash and stock transaction valued at about $6.6 billion. As part of the deal, Brink’s will also take on $2.6 billion in NCR Atleos debt, a press release on the transaction said.

Regulators have yet to approve the deal. The Competition and Markets Authority in the U.K. said Brink’s acquisition of NCR Atleos could limit competition, according to a September report from the news outlet Reuters. Earlier this month, the Wall Street Journal reported Brink’s plans to sell some subsidiaries in a move aimed at assuaging U.K. concerns.

“We continue to make meaningful progress on regulatory approval processes across the multiple jurisdictions, and have significantly advanced the integration planning activities for the pending combination of Atleos and The Brink’s Company,” Oliver said in the release this week.