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Are checks overused?

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Author Info
Kirstin E. Wells
Abstract

This study overturns the conclusion of a 1990 study by David Humphrey and Allen Berger, which found that check float is responsible for the popularity of checks despite their high resource cost compared to electronic payment instruments. The new study examines recent data on the costs of checks and automated clearinghouse (ACH) payments. It finds that the value of check float has decreased significantly since the 1990 study and is no longer large enough to make checks more attractive than ACH payments. The study also questions whether the idea that float could be responsible for the persistent use of checks is reasonable given standard assumptions about the behavior of economic agents. The study ends by speculating on why checks are used more than less-costly alternatives and by encouraging policymakers to wait for researchers to adequately answer that question before intervening in the market for payment instruments.

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Publisher Info
Article provided by Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis in its journal Quarterly Review.

Volume (Year): (1996)
Issue (Month): Fall ()
Pages: 2-12
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Handle: RePEc:fip:fedmqr:y:1996:i:fall:p:2-12:n:v.20no.4

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Related research
Keywords: Clearinghouses (Banking);

References listed on IDEAS
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  1. Paul W. Bauer & Diana Hancock, 1995. "Scale economies and technological change in Federal Reserve ACH payment processing," Economic Review, Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, issue Q III, pages 14-29. [Downloadable!]
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(explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)

  1. Gupta, Amar & Palacios, Rafael, 2002. "Training Neural Networks for Reading Handwritten Amounts on Checks," Working papers 4365-02, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Sloan School of Management. [Downloadable!]
  2. Brian Mantel, 2000. "Why don't consumers use electronic banking products? towards a theory of obstacles, incentives, and opportunities," Occasional Paper; Emerging Payments EPS-2000-1, Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. [Downloadable!]
  3. Loretta J. Mester, 2000. "The changing nature of the payments system: should new players mean new rules?," Business Review, Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, issue Mar, pages 3-26. [Downloadable!]
  4. Joanna Stavins, 1997. "A comparison of social costs and benefits of paper check presentment and ECP with truncation," New England Economic Review, Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, issue Jul, pages 27-44. [Downloadable!]
  5. Brian Mantel, 2000. "Why do consumers pay bills electronically? an empirical analysis," Economic Perspectives, Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, issue Q IV, pages 32-48. [Downloadable!]
  6. Humphrey, David B. & Keppler, Robert H. & Montes-Negret, Fernando, 1997. "Cost recovery and pricing of payment services," Policy Research Working Paper Series 1833, The World Bank. [Downloadable!]
  7. Jeffrey M. Lacker, 1997. "The check float puzzle," Economic Quarterly, Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, issue Sum, pages 1-26. [Downloadable!]
  8. Kjersti-Gro Lindquist, 2002. "The Effect of New Technology in Payment Services on Banks' Intermediation," 10th International Conference on Panel Data, Berlin, July 5-6, 2002 B3-2, International Conferences on Panel Data. [Downloadable!]
  9. David Humphrey & Magnus Willesson & Goran Bergendahl & Ted Lindblom, 2003. "Cost savings from electronic payments and ATMs in Europe," Working Papers 03-16, Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia. [Downloadable!]
  10. Franklin Allen & James McAndrews & Philip Strahan, 2001. "E-Finance: An Introduction," Center for Financial Institutions Working Papers 01-36, Wharton School Center for Financial Institutions, University of Pennsylvania. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  11. Joanna Stavins & Paul W. Bauer, 1997. "The effect of pricing on demand and revenue in Federal Reserve ACH payment processing," Working Papers 97-6, Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  12. William R. Emmons, 1996. "Price stability and the efficiency of the retail payments system," Review, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, issue Sep, pages 49-61. [Downloadable!]
  13. Joanna Stavins & Paul W. Bauer, 1997. "The effect of pricing on demand and revenue in Federal Reserve ACH payment processing," Financial Services working paper 97-01, Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland. [Downloadable!]
  14. Gautam Gowrisankaran & Joanna Stavins, 1999. "Network externalities and technology adoption: lessons from electronic payments," Working Papers 99-5, Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. [Downloadable!]
  15. James McAndrews & William Roberds, 1999. "A general equilibrium analysis of check float," Staff Reports 84, Federal Reserve Bank of New York. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  16. Elizabeth Klee, 2006. "Families' use of payment instruments during a decade of change in the U.S. payment system," Finance and Economics Discussion Series 2006-01, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (U.S.). [Downloadable!]
  17. Daniel D. Garcia-Swartz & Robert W. Hahn & Anne Layne-Farrar, 2006. "The Move Toward a Cashless Society: A Closer Look at Payment Instrument Economics," Review of Network Economics, Concept Economics, vol. 5(2), pages 175-198, June. [Downloadable!]
  18. Joanna Stavins, 2002. "Effect of consumer characteristics on the use of payment instruments," New England Economic Review, Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, issue Q 3, pages 19-31. [Downloadable!]
  19. Robert M. Adams & Paul W. Bauer & Robin C. Sickles, 2002. "Scale economies, scope economies, and technical change in Federal Reserve payment processing," Finance and Economics Discussion Series 2002-57, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (U.S.). [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  20. James J. McAndrews, 1997. "Network issues and payment systems," Business Review, Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, issue Nov, pages 15-25. [Downloadable!]
  21. Margaret E. Guerin-Calvert & Janusz A. Ordover, 2005. "Merchant Benefits and Public Policy towards Interchange: An Economic Assessment," Review of Network Economics, Concept Economics, vol. 4(4), pages 384-414, December. [Downloadable!]
  22. Daniel D. Garcia-Swartz & Robert W. Hahn & Anne Layne-Farrar, 2006. "The Move Toward a Cashless Society: Calculating the Costs and Benefits," Review of Network Economics, Concept Economics, vol. 5(2), pages 199-228, June. [Downloadable!]
  23. Sujit Chakravorti & William R. Emmons, 2001. "Who pays for credit cards?," Occasional Paper; Emerging Payments EPS-2001-1, Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. [Downloadable!]
  24. Guibourg, Gabriela & Segendorf, Björn, 2004. "Do Prices Reflect Costs? A study of the price- and cost structure of retail payment services in the Swedish banking sector 2002," Working Paper Series 172, Sveriges Riksbank (Central Bank of Sweden). [Downloadable!]
  25. Robert M. Adams & Paul W. Bauer & Robin C. Sickles, 2002. "Scope and scale economies in Federal Reserve payment processing," Working Paper 0213, Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland. [Downloadable!]
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This page was last updated on 2009-11-20.

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