Bank of Fayetteville to Start Check Imaging

On Jan. 6, The Bank of Fayetteville plans to fully implement a new system that scans canceled checks from customers and stores those images on a computer at the bank.

The process means customers will no longer receive canceled checks in the mail with their monthly bank statements. Instead, they will receive a printout with images of the front and back of each check.

“The scanned image becomes a permanent digital document and can be reproduced at any time,” John Lewis, president of The Bank of Fayetteville, wrote in a letter to the bank’s customers.

Lewis said the Image Advantage system made by NCR Corp. of Dayton, Ohio, will provide easier statement reconciliation, a more efficient filing system and easier income tax preparation and will enhance the bank’s research capabilities. The bank purchased the machine, called I-tran, in November and trained employees to use it for about two months before totally converting to that system.

Melinda Jenkins, a consultant for NCR who helped train the bank’s staff in December, said the $500,000 I-tran system can capture 500 images per minute.

“By capturing images digitally, instead of on microfilm, it’s going to allow the bank to give the customer a copy of a check in five seconds instead of five minutes,” she said.

Jenkins said about 30 percent of the community banks in the United States (or about 5,000 banks) are currently using a document-imaging system instead of microfilm.

The system will also save the bank about $25,000 per year in postage.

Lewis said he plans to pass that savings on to customers.