§4001 Definitions

Summary

Lists short, plain definitions for words used in the chapter. It gives one-line meanings for 25 terms so readers know how the chapter uses them. Account is a checking or similar transaction account at a bank. Board is the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. Business day is any day that is not a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday. Cash is U.S. coins and bills, including Federal Reserve notes. Cashier’s check is a check the bank issues, signed by a bank officer and backed by the bank. Certified check is a check the bank verifies and sets funds aside to pay. Check is a negotiable demand draft payable through a U.S. bank office and does not include noncash items. Check clearinghouse association is a local system banks use to exchange deposited checks without using Federal Reserve check processing. Check processing region is the area served by a Federal Reserve check processing center or a larger area the Board sets. Consumer account is an account used mainly for personal, family, or household purposes. Depository check covers cashier’s, certified, teller’s checks, and similar items the Board says are equivalent. Depository institution is defined elsewhere in law and also includes a foreign bank’s U.S. office, branch, or agency. Local originating depository institution is an originating bank in the same check processing region as the receiving bank. Noncash item is a check or demand item with attached documents, special instructions, or items the Board classifies that way. Nonlocal originating depository institution is an originating bank that is not local. Proprietary ATM is an ATM at or very near a branch or owned or run by the receiving bank. Originating depository institution is the branch on which a check is written. Nonproprietary ATM is any ATM that is not proprietary. Participant is a bank in the same area as a check clearinghouse that exchanges checks through it. Receiving depository institution is the U.S. branch or proprietary ATM where a check is first deposited. State lists the States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, and the Virgin Islands. Teller’s check is a check one bank issues that is drawn on another bank. United States is defined the same as State above. Unit of general local government is a city, county, town, township, parish, village, or similar local government. Wire transfer is defined by rules the Board makes.