Important Notice
Credit Card Online Online Banking Credit Cards

Important Notice

Dear Valued Client:

RE: IMPORTANT NOTICE- NEW CHEQUE STANDARDS ACROSS THE EASTERN CARIBBEAN CURRENCY UNION (ECCU)

The Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB), in collaboration with the commercial banks in the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union, has initiated a project to modernise the cheque clearing and settlement system between banks. This new system is the Eastern Caribbean Automated Clearing House (ECACH) which will result in more efficient and secure electronic processing of cheques and settlements between the banks in the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union.

One of the critical early steps undertaken to facilitate this new clearing system involves updating of all the cheques now in circulation enabling them to be electronically recognized and processed.

We would like to ensure that all cheques written by you are compliant with these new standards, as cheques not meeting the new specifications will not be able to be imaged and processed electronically. Kindly note that based on the new regulations, we are unable to commit to the acceptance of non-compliant cheques from 31 December 2014. To avoid any delays and disruptions involved in processing your cheques submitted to us through other banks, please ensure that you:

  • Visit your branch and place a new cheque order which would include the MICR (Magnetic Ink Character Recognition) line.
  • Immediately upon receipt of your new cheque books, destroy your old, non-compliant cheques, and begin to use the new cheques.
  • Use only black or blue ink pens to complete your cheques and bank drafts.
  • Do not write, sign or place marks on the MICR line.
  • Write on cheques in a legible manner.  If the information on your cheque is typed, use font size 6-8 pts.
  • Avoid elements that could hinder image capturing of cheques such as italics, slanted fonts and use of black carbon on the reverse of cheques.  Also, avoid colorful or complex backgrounds.

Below is a sample of a NEW compliant cheque. 

Compliant Personal/Company Cheque.

The three key compliance features at a glance, are as follows:

  1. Cheques contain a Magnetic Ink Character Recognition (MICR) line at the bottom of the cheque, with information specific to the client’s (Personal/Company) bank, branch and account number, which are necessary for processing through the new clearing system.
  2. Cheques are personalised (contain Personal/Company name, address and telephone number).
  3. The date field is formatted as YYYYMMDD or MMDDYYYY or DDMMYYYY.

We are excited to work with the ECCB on modernising the financial system which will result in improved service to you, our valued client. Should you require further information please feel free to contact us at 268-480-6187.

We remain committed to serving you.