Milestone - Check Image Volume Surpasses Paper Check Volume

In another sign of the growing adoption of image exchange, check images transmitted via the SVPCO Image Payments Network represented 51.0%, or 193.9 million items, handled by SVPCO in April. By comparison, SVPCO’s paper check volume was 49%, or 8.7 million items a day. In April, average image dollar value was 54.5%, or $18.2 billion, compared to 45.2%, or $15.1 billion, in average daily paper check value. The dollar value of check images surpassed paper checks in January 2007.

“This is a truly historic milestone for the banking industry because the volume of paper check exchange handled by The Clearing House has now been surpassed for the first time and it’s unlikely to represent a majority of check volume again,” said Jerry Milano, Senior Vice President of The Clearing House, responsible for SVPCO-Paper Check Services. “This is another clear indication that a new era has arrived for the payments business.”

Susan Long, Senior Vice President of The Clearing House, responsible for SVPCO-Electronic Clearing Services, said: “Image exchange has grown rapidly because financial institutions understand the strategic importance of building a 21 st century check processing operation. At the same time, financial institutions see that as the economics of image exchange improve, the expense of paper check exchange increases. With image exchange gaining momentum in all regions of the country, the time to act is now. The good news is that there are cost-effective image exchange solutions for institutions with varying levels of volume.”