Self-service terminal having a cassette and method of replenishing the cassette with sheet currency

A self-service terminal comprising:

• a user interface;
• a receiver for receiving sheet currency from a person;
• a validator for detecting counterfeit currency in the receiver;
• a cassette receiver for holding a cassette to be replenished, said cassette being used by the terminal to dispense currency to customers;
• and
• a loading mechanism for accepting validated, non-counterfeit currency from the receiver and replenishing the cassette with said validated currency,
• wherein the loading mechanism includes (i) a conveyor for delivering sheet currency to a cassette, and (ii) a deflector configured such that when a sheet of currency is present the media item co-operates with the deflector to displace at least part of the conveyor from a non-deflected position to a deflected position in which stacking of the sheet currency in the cassette is facilitated by allowing the sheet currency to be stacked to pass between the top of the stack of sheet currency and a raised part of the conveyor.

A self-service terminal system comprising:

• a user interface;
• a receiver for receiving sheet currency;
• a validator for checking whether counterfeit currency was received by the receiver;
• means for retaining a first cassette in a position for being replenished with sheet currency, said first cassette having been removed from an Automated Teller Machine, ATM, and said first cassette, when present in the means for retaining, is located outside an ATM;
• and
• a loading mechanism which moves between bottom and top of the first cassette to replenish the first cassette with currency which was validated as non-counterfeit by the validator.

A method of replenishing a cassette with sheet currency in a self-service terminal, the method comprising the steps of:

• removing the cassette from an Automated Teller Machine, ATM;
• retaining the cassette in a replenishment terminal different from the ATM, in a position for receiving sheets of currency;
• at the replenishment terminal, receiving sheet currency to be used in replenishing the cassette;
• using a validator at the replenishment terminal, validating whether the received sheet currency contains counterfeit currency;
• and
• using a loading conveyor, accepting from the validator sheet currency validated as non-counterfeit;
• and
• loading the sheet currency validated into the cassette to replenish the cassette.