Citi to make changes limiting acceptance of cash payments effective 7/21/2018

[David R]

On December 2, 2014, Citibank emailed me this:

Good news!
Now you don't need a PIN to make a CitiŪ credit card payment at a CitibankŪ branch ATM.
Making your Citi credit card payments at any branch ATM is more convenient than ever, because you don't need a Personal Identification Number (PIN).
So, there's no need to go to a teller to make your Citi credit card payment.
Try it now!

Follow these steps at the ATM:
1.   Insert your Citi credit card into a Citibank branch ATM and select a language
2.   Select the payment option and insert cash or check
3.   Confirm the amount you paid and get a record of your transaction

This month, they mailed me a letter stating that starting July 21, 2018 the following changes will take place:

• Cash payments for credit cards will no longer be accepted by bank employees at Citibank branches.
• Cash payments at Citibank ATMs must use a credit card PIN and will be limited to $3,000 per calendar month for each card account.

The earlier email makes it clear that Citibank considered it a good thing. So why would they make things less convenient?

I posed this question to a chat rep, who offered this bogus response, which obviously has no correlation to the specific changes they are making:

The reason for this change is Citi Cards is seeing more customers moving to digital payment channels, including online and mobile.
We are making this change because it will allow us to operate more efficiently and focus on payment channels that are more commonly used.

[lubaby]

Title sounds like they are now starting to accept cash, not the other way around.

[Boruch999]

Handling cash costs them money.  It makes sense they'd want to limit it.  Here in Israel, many branches don't have any tellers nor handle any cash.  It's every western governments dream to cancel cash altogether.

[ChaimMoskowitz]

Title sounds like they are now starting to accept cash, not the other way around.

Yanny/Laurel

[David R]

Handling cash costs them money.  It makes sense they'd want to limit it.  Here in Israel, many branches don't have any tellers nor handle any cash.  It's every western governments dream to cancel cash altogether.

We're talking about ATMs and tellers that accept cash deposits to bank accounts all day long. Your explanation does not address the differentiation between using a PIN at the ATM (which will continue to be allowed for payments up to $3000 per month) and not using a PIN at the ATM (which will no longer be allowed). Your explanation does not address the differentiation between handing the teller the cash to deposit into a bank account, followed by transferring the funds to pay the credit card (which will continue to be allowed) and handing the teller the cash to pay the credit card directly (which will no longer be allowed).

I would like to hear a reason that is consistent with the precise changes they are making.

[David R]

Title sounds like they are now starting to accept cash, not the other way around.

Better now?

[elimmm]

a chase teller once told me that they like to limit cash payments cuz of money laundering. i still havent figured that out