Criteria and Requirements for Operating a Cash Transportation Service

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority The Monetary Authority

Currency Administration

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No. 53506/-198
Date: 13/04/1440
Without Attachments

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Circular

Subject: Criteria and Requirements for Operating a Cash Transportation Service

To: His Excellency,

Greetings,

With reference to the telegram from His Royal Highness Prince Abdulaziz bin Saud bin Nayef bin Abdulaziz, Minister of Interior and Chairman of the High Commission for Industrial Security, No. 54.33 dated 10/3/1440H, which included the approval of recommendations from the committee formed by specialists from the Ministry of Interior, the Ministry of Finance, and the Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority to review and update the criteria and requirements for operating cash and precious metals transportation and valuable documents activities; and with reference to the Authority's Circular No. 371000093183 dated 22/8/1437H, which included recommendations on the cash transportation system.

Accordingly, his Highness's telegram contained a number of final recommendations and defined the tasks required from the relevant authorities, as follows:

1. All licensed cash and precious metals transportation companies and institutions must ensure their vehicles are fully armored (VPAM6), including sides and surfaces, with standard anti-ballistic armor of at least the type issued by the European Committee for Standards, in accordance with the approved technical specifications attached to this circular. Note that vehicle armor is optional if high-specification containers and security devices for cash transportation are available, subject to obtaining approval from the General Secretariat of the High Commission for Industrial Security.

2. Cash transportation vehicles must carry a separate security permit issued by the General Secretariat of the High Commission for Industrial Security (Central Licensing Security Unit). The Secretariat also issues permits for vehicle armor, factory establishment, and import requests for armored vehicles through its electronic portal. Cash transportation companies must submit license renewal applications three months before expiration. Practicing the activity with an expired license is prohibited. Cash transportation companies must perform continuous preventive maintenance on their vehicles, and the estimated service life of cash transportation vehicles must not exceed five years from the date they enter service.

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P.O. Box 2992, Riyadh 11169, Phone +966 11 4633000, Fax +966 11 4662980, Email: currency@sama.gov.sa

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3. Banks, banks, and cash-in-transit companies are committed to strengthening supervision over the work of approved cash transportation companies within cash centers and reporting to the security authority (General Security) any company violating the system's application. They must also adhere to the procedures and mechanisms for receiving and delivering cash.

4. Banks, banks, cash-in-transit companies, and cash transportation companies and institutions must adhere to the systems and regulations specifying the crew of cash transportation vehicles, limited to three individuals only (driver, guard, monitor), with the guard and monitor being armed. In the event that cash transportation vehicles are used in automated teller machine (ATM) replenishment activities, the monitor working within the armored vehicle crew is responsible for ATM replenishment. This requires providing electronic locks on the machine safes.

5. It is necessary for workers on cash transportation vehicles to use encrypted communication devices that are difficult to breach.

6. Cash transportation companies are committed to registering cash transportation contracts and employees with the Central Licensing Security Unit at the General Secretariat of the High Commission for Industrial Security and registering employees securely.

7. Banks, banks, and cash-in-transit companies are committed to installing surveillance cameras covering all fronts of their affiliated sites, customer car parks, the delivery and receipt area for cash transportation vehicles, and all sensitive areas such as ATMs. These must be linked to the television camera recording unit, with recordings retained for a period of no less than six months.

8. When receiving and delivering shipments, the vehicle must be stopped in the nearest place to the delivery and receipt point, such that the vehicle door is in front of the bank or merchant.

9. Feeding boxes for ATMs must be filled and placed inside designated containers, secured by an independent work team under dual supervision and under television camera recording inside cash centers. The role of the field feeding team is limited to transporting cash containers for the machines and feeding the machine according to a route given to them at the beginning of the work day, with the security authorities notified of the route. The independent work team mentioned above is responsible for recounting and matching the machines with the cash returned from the machines according to the readings of the ATM meters and the bank's system, and this must be under television camera recording.

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P.O. Box 2992, Riyadh 11169, Phone +966 11 4633000, Fax +966 11 4662980, Email: currency@sama.gov.sa

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10. The process of ATM replenishment must be limited to replacing boxes equipped with cash only, and no currency transfer from one box to another should be performed during the machine replenishment process, regardless of any cash amounts in the replaced box. Maintenance of the ATM should not be linked to the replenishment process, emphasizing to workers the need to complete the replenishment task as quickly as possible.

11. Cash transportation companies, banks, banks, and cash-in-transit companies are committed to adopting the use of high-specification containers for cash transportation when receiving and delivering cash to and from branches, cash centers, transfers, cash-in-transit companies, and the retail sector. These containers allow for automatic tracking and self-destruction with security ink in case of changing the specified route, attempting to open by force, tampering with, or damaging them in a non-systematic manner, according to the approved technical specifications attached to this circular, within six months from its date.

12. Working hours for ATM replenishment and maintenance are throughout the week, including official holidays and the weekend, and around the clock (24 hours) for main cities (Makkah Al-Mukarramah, Al-Madinah Al-Munawwarah, Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam, Al-Khobar), commercial centers, airports, and train stations. For other cities in the Kingdom, working hours are from 7:00 AM to 10:00 PM, except as determined by the security authorities.

Attached are the conditions and technical requirements for manufacturing and producing armored vehicles for cash, precious metals, and valuable documents transportation, specifications for ink and security cash transportation containers, and general requirements.

We hope for the swift implementation of what concerns you regarding the recommendations, conditions, requirements, and technical standards attached. In case of any difficulties you may face, we hope for coordination with the Advisor to the Deputy Governor for Banking Operations / Mohammed bin Abdulaziz Al-Amri, phone number (0114662757).

Accept my regards,

Hashim bin Uthman Al-Aqeel
Deputy Governor for Banking Operations

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Distribution Scope:

• Banks, banks, and cash-in-transit companies operating in the Kingdom
• Licensed cash transportation companies
• His Excellency the Deputy Governor for Supervision
• The Honorable
• General Administration of Legal Affairs
• General Administration of Currency and Exchanges with Individuals

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P.O. Box 2992, Riyadh 11169, Phone +966 11 4633000, Fax +966 11 4662980, Email: currency@sama.gov.sa