Referring to the telegram from His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, Deputy Prime Minister, and Minister of Interior (may God protect him), No. 126563, dated 14/05/1437H, which includes the approval of the results of the security committee formed by (Public Security - Ministry of Finance - and SAMA) to review and update the necessary standards and conditions, and to impose strict and precise regulations for practicing the activity of transporting  cash, precious metals, and negotiable instruments, requiring all companies operating in this field to comply with them.

Based on this, the committee concluded with a number of recommendations concerning banks and cash transport companies, as follows:

1. Require banks to enhance oversight of the performance of contracted companies inside cash centers, adhere to specific procedures and mechanisms for receiving and delivering cash, and impose necessary penalties on violating banks.
    
2. Separate the tasks and responsibilities related to cash transportation from those related to replenishing ATMs:
   • Companies must adhere to the regulations and guidelines for the transport vehicle crew involved in cash transportation, consisting of three members (driver, guard, and companion). The guard and companion should be equipped with the necessary firearms.
      
   • When using a transport vehicle for ATM replenishment, the two-person replenishment team (supervisor and replenisher) should never accompany the armored vehicle crew. Instead, they should travel in a civilian vehicle displaying the company logo, following the armored vehicle’s route. This setup will result in a five-person ATM replenishment team (three inside the armored vehicle and two in the civilian vehicle).
      
   • Cash replenishment boxes for ATMs must be filled, secured inside specialized containers, and sealed by an independent team from the cash transport company. This process should be under dual supervision and monitored by CCTV inside cash centers. The ATM replenishment team’s role should be limited to transporting the secured containers and replenishing ATMs according to a preassigned route provided at the start of the workday.
      
   • A separate team (from the bank or the company) at the cash center should be responsible for counting and reconciling the returned cash from ATMs according to the readings from the ATM counters and the bank’s system.
      
3. Implement the use of high-standard cash transport containers as practiced in developed countries, which enable automatic tracking and self-destruction of the cash if the proposed route is altered, replacing the current fabric containers.
    
4. Leverage credit information from the Credit Information Company (SIMAH) to review the credit history of individuals applying for jobs at cash transport companies and other legitimate sources to assess the suitability of employees in this field.
    
5. Provide SAMA with the procedures and mechanisms followed by the bank to monitor the performance of companies contracted for cash transport and ATM replenishment. This includes doubling supervision and monitoring the movement of cash transport vehicles, precious metals, and negotiable instruments, as well as tracking the time allocated for cash transport and ATM replenishment to and from the bank premises. Additionally, review the rotation of employees in cash centers, cash transport, and ATM replenishment, and work on improving training programs to enhance the performance and efficiency of employees in both the contracted companies and banks.
    

Therefore, we request that you proceed with the swift implementation of the above-mentioned recommendations and provide us with an update within two weeks from this date. It is worth noting that arrangements are currently being made to allow licensed cash transport companies to establish their own cash processing units to serve the ATMs of all the banks they contract with, following the necessary approvals from SAMA and the Ministry of Interior. These units will be governed by unified security standards, procedures, and requirements. The license for operating such cash processing units will be granted for a maximum of three years, renewable, with the aim of improving service levels and preparing local companies to manage and operate unified cash centers, which will be established by SAMA.