Checks ? Here Today, Here Tomorrow Visa and ... - The Green Sheet

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In the end, the effort will be well worth
it. The eventual systematic conversion of
paper checks into electronic payments
will eliminate check-processing centers,
global transportation costs and all the
operational expense in physically
handling pieces of paper.
with NACHA’s Electronic Check Council in early 2002.
These are just the beginning of a series of initiatives and
successes that will become increasingly apparent as the
organization evolves and executes its strategic plan.
WesPay’s collective leadership believes that the next five
years might well prove to be one of the most dynamic and
productive periods in the history of electronic payments –
as well as the most challenging. Many financial institutions
will have to re-allocate the substantial resources currently
devoted to check processing and make additional
investments in electronic payments systems. That might
not be easy.
Financial institutions will need to do much strategic planning
and decision-making to transform large check-processing
and payments systems into a single, integrated
whole that is also capable of accommodating a growing
amount of transaction volume.
In the end, the effort will be well worth it. The eventual
systematic conversion of paper checks into electronic payments
will eliminate check-processing centers, global
transportation costs and all the operational expense in
physically handling pieces of paper.
In the process, financial institutions will be able to serve
their own customers better in a variety of ways while
offering additional payment options that are more secure
and more efficient. All through this transition, WesPay will
be there for member institutions to take advantage of the
long-awaited future that is finally arriving.
Gerard F. Milano is Chief Executive Officer of the
Western Payments Alliance, the largest regional
payments association in the United States, with
more than 1,000 member organizations in the
western U.S.
EBT