MUMBAI: The number of automated teller machines (ATMs) declined moderately in FY25, with the increase in digitisation, a RBI report said on Monday.

The number of bank branches increased by over 2 per cent on the back of network expansion by the public sector banks, the report on Trend and Progress of Banking in India for FY25 said.

The overall number of ATMs declined to 2,51,057 as of March 31, 2025, from 2,53,417 in the yearago period, driven down further by private-sector banks’ strategies, it indicated.

Private sector banks’ ATM network declined to 77,117 from 79,884 in the last year, while the public sector banks also had a decline to 1,33,544 from 1,34,694 in the year-ago period, it said, adding that the decline was due to both groups shutting down offsite ATMs. “Increase in digitalisation of payments has reduced the customers’ requirement of transacting with ATMs,” the report said.

The independently-run white label ATMs increased to 36,216 from 34,602 in the year-ago period. Public sector banks’ ATM distribution was evenly distributed between rural, semi-urban, urban and metropolitan areas, while the private sector banks and foreign banks had a concentration in the urban and metropolitan areas in their ATM networks.

However, banks continue to open new branches despite the ingress of alternative channels powered by digital technologies.

As of March 31, there were 1.64 lakh branches in the country, which was up by 2.8 per cent, the report said.

PSBs were more aggressive on new branch openings in FY25, and the share of private banks in the new branch openings declined to 51.8 per cent in the fiscal year from 67.3 per cent in the year-ago period.

The RBI noted that more than two-thirds of the new branches opened by PSBs were in rural and semi-urban centres, while the share was just 37.5 per cent for private banks.