Object in focus: the Williams and Glyn card

Blog

Jonathan Parrett, Collections Manager

Our collections reflect the varieties of ways in which people have interacted with money throughout history, from the earliest banknotes to the latest high tech contactless smart jewellery.

These rather unassuming cards relate to one of the biggest jumps in how people gained access to their savings – using Automated Teller Machines (ATMs). 

ATMs were invented in the 1960s; the first in the UK was opened at Barclays Bank, Enfield and opened by the actor Reg Varney on 27 June 1967. 

There were two types of ATM: the De La Rue Automatic Cash System (DACS) and the Chubb MD2. Although seen as cutting-edge technology, banks were slow to start using them with their customers. For example, by 1969, NatWest had installed 75 machines, (twice as many as all the other clearing banks combined). 

However, Williams and Glyn, who were the English constituent for Royal Bank of Scotland, realised the benefit of these machines, and had installed 12 in the same timeframe. This was despite the bank being one of the smallest in the country at the time.

But how did these old-school ATMs work?

Each card had a fixed value, usually £20, which the machine would provide once the card had been entered, and the user had entered their PIN. However, unlike modern machines, the machine kept the card. Each night, a Bank worker then had to manually update the user’s account in a ledger, and then return the card to them in the post. Hence why several cards were provided to each account holder! 

These cards use a ‘punch card’ system which is where the computer reads the holes and interprets the data. It’s based on the works of Joseph Marie Jacquard (who developed a fully automatic loom using these punch cards in the 1800s) and Charles Babbage (who built on Jacquard’s theories and used a similar approach for his calculating engine in the 1830s)

The cards were very popular, but Williams and Glyn recognised that for many people, this would be their first interaction with a computer. Perhaps this is best summed up in the letter sent to the customer as part of their welcome pack, which includes the line:

Quote box, if possible: “A major cause of transaction invalidation is the anticipation by a customer of the dispenser’s “key in number” instruction – we ask you therefore to await the instruction signal before commencing to key in your personal code number”.

Ever been too keen to enter your PIN, and had to wait for the machine to hand over your money before realising you entered your PIN too quickly? Some things never change!

The cards became more secure once ATMs started using commercial microprocessors as part of the design. This change enabled the cards to have magnetic strips rather than punch holes and  meant that the new magnetic strip cards could be returned to the customer once they had been used.

So, why are things like this of interest to the Museum?

Well, a key part of our mission to tell the story of how people used money, and the move from physical currency to new technologies (such as ATM cards, credit cards and beyond) is a massive part of that.

These cards also reflect the limitations of computers at the time and how amazing new technologies were created in spite of them: it wasn’t always possible toto access your money at any time of day!  And finally, as these technologies develop and get even better, these cards serva as an important reminder of just how much things have changed in relatively short time.