Wells Fargo Plans More Envelope-Free ATMs

"With the new technology, you don't need to spend time writing on an envelope or keying in a deposit amount. You just insert your money into a slot and the machine sorts, counts and verifies it," said Jonathan Velline, head of Wells Fargo's ATM Banking division. "Our Envelope-Free ATMs also converts paper checks into a digital image which then appears on the ATM screen and receipt, so you know your check was received. You can't get this in the traditional envelope world."

Wells Fargo, the third largest bank-owned ATM network in the country, will install 150 Envelope-Free ATMs in eleven California counties, including Fresno, Santa Cruz, Monterey, and Merced, by this March, and then more machines in San Francisco and the rest of Northern California later this year as part of the 825 machine rollout. The company has over 400 Envelope-Free ATMs in Contra Costa, Alameda and Santa Clara, California.

Envelope-Free ATMs offer customers some important benefits:

• Faster and easier ATM deposits -- customers can deposit stacks of bills (up to 30 bills in different denominations) and checks (up to 10) directly into the machine at one time.
• Assurance that checks or cash deposits have been received -- customers see check images on the ATM screen and a count of each denomination for cash deposits.
• Proof-positive receipts -- customers receive an itemized listing of each deposited bill and images of deposited checks on their receipt. The account number is illegible for additional security.
• Instant credit for cash deposits -- funds are immediately credited to the customer's account, just as if they made a cash deposit at the teller window.
• Same day credit for check deposits -- the deposit cut-off time has been extended from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. (weekdays), giving customers same- day credit for deposits even after the banking store has closed.
• ATM does the math for you -- customers insert cash and a listing of every deposited bill is provided on the ATM screen. Customers insert checks and the character recognition software reads and posts an image of the check and the amount on the screen.
• Saves trees -- by making deposits without an envelope, Wells Fargo customers help reduce waste, save more than a thousand trees per year, and reduce air pollutants by more than a quarter million tons of CO2 equivalents.

Wells Fargo has been piloting Envelope-Free ATMs since 2002. On October 28, 2004, the same day Check 21 became federal law; Wells Fargo was the first financial institution in the U.S. to transmit a check deposited at an ATM in Hayward, California. Check 21, short for Check Clearing for the 21st Century Act, allows banks to use "substitute checks," or a printed copy of the digital image of the original check.

All of Wells Fargo's 6,700+ ATMs are web-enabled, which means they are faster, easier to use, and can perform more functions than traditional ATMs. They feature six language screen options; customizable fast cash amounts and MyATM(R) receipt preferences; access up to 22 financial accounts; the highest level of security; and colorful, large font touch-screens that make it easier to navigate from screen to screen. In addition, all of Wells Fargo's ATM locations offer voice instructions for the visually impaired in both English and Spanish. The Windows-based software makes it easier for Wells Fargo to make systems improvements -- such as adding new languages or the ability to accept deposits without an envelope.