Do you know how the ATM was invented? Whose was the brilliant idea?
The inventor of the ATM: Do you know the story of how it was invented? Sometimes you can be surprised how an idea can appear in the most curious and simple way at the same time! So, how was the ATM invented?
Well, it all started in 1939, Luther George Simjian patented a prototype ATM, which did not have much luck because after being installed for half a year, it only attracted people who “lived on the street day and night” to make a living and they did not want to appear in a bank office because of their appearance. So it ended up being an idea that did not get very far… or at least, that prototype!
But the invention that Shepherd Barron inaugurated in 1967 had greater luck and relevance. His problem was that he needed some cash and went to his bank in London to withdraw it. Unfortunately the bank was already closed and he couldn’t perform the operation. Upon arriving home at the end of the day, he jumped in the bath and had a great revelation: to develop a vending machine for banknotes. That is, an ATM. Obviously, this had already been “created” by Luther, but apparently Shepherd designed it in a way that generated more interest. For this reason, the Enfield branch of Barclays Bank was the first to house the first ATM in the world.
In turn, Barron’s wife was the one who “invented” the PIN number to withdraw money from the account. Originally the PIN was going to be 6 digits but Barron’s wife told him that she only remembered 4 of them with ease and therefore, they decided to stick with 4 digits.
How about now?
According to the EAST (European Association for Secure Transactions), the UK with 70,308 has the most ATMs in Europe. Germany is in second with 60,038, then France (58,097) and Italy (51,500). Spain is fifth with 47,626 ATMs.
You know what they say, every day’s a school day!
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