Electronic Check Processing is the Norm

Despite years of predictions that paper checks would go the way of the dinosaur, paper check transactions are still alive and well. But, there’s little doubt that the number of checks being written is declining. Many people under 30 have never written a paper check and scoff at the notion.
As the Federal Reserve drives up the cost of processing paper checks, the cost of processing checks electronically is steadily decreasing. The older generations may continue to write checks but the checks will be processed as electronic images.
SVPCO Image Payments Network is the nation's largest check image exchange network in the US. In 2008, it, handled a record 5.6 billion check images, nearly twice the number exchanged across the network in 2007. SVPCO was clearing an average of 27.4 million check images daily, according to network reports.
Research firm Celent estimates two-thirds of small businesses receive five or fewer check payments a day. As check imaging prices continue to drop and check scanners get cheaper, even the smallest of merchants will begin converting paper checks to electronic transactions using Check 21 remote deposit capture technology.
Paper checks will continue to exist for many years to come. But few merchants will ever deposit paper checks in the bank, preferring the convenience of submitting them electronically.