JPMorgan Treasury Service is planning to open a remote cheque image capture site in Europe. The site will allow clients in EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) and Asia to take advantage of benefits from the Check Clearing for the 21st Century Act (Check 21). Check 21 will facilitate the use of electronic images of cheques by allowing the creation of Substitute Cheques from images of the originals – and requiring banks to accept, through the clearing and return processing, these Substitute Cheques as the legal equivalent of an original cheque.
JPMorgan’s financial institution clients in EMEA and Asia will ultimately be able to eliminate the need to pay for the physical transport of cheques to the U.S. for presentment, minimizing courier costs. Additional benefits include reduced risks related to transport loss, faster identification of fraudulent items, as well as greater efficiencies and eventual reductions in processing costs.
Check 21, which takes effect on October 28, 2004, will provide U.S. banks with the ability to improve U.S. cheque clearing efficiency. The regulation enables financial institutions to eliminate the original check in the cheque clearing process, by designating the copy of an electronic cheque image to be the legal equivalent of an original paper cheque for final presentment or return.
“As a global leader in cheque processing, JPMorgan is committed to staying on the cutting edge of product development and providing our clients with the latest innovations,” says Lisa Robins, senior vice president and global head of cheque deposit services, JPMorgan Treasury Services. “In leveraging our international capabilities, we are able to bring the many significant benefits of Check 21 to our valued clients based outside the U.S.”
Remote image capture will be available to JPMorgan customers throughout EMEA, as well as in Asia in early 2005.
“By taking a holistic approach, JPMorgan provides a flexible infrastructure capable of supporting the full processing cycle, from the issuance of payments to the eventual capture of the cancelled cheque,” explains Robins. “As a trusted banking partner, JPMorgan prides itself on being able to offer the best possible solutions for our clients around the world.”