Electronic Cheques Clearing System (ECC)

Electronic clearing Definition

Electronic clearing is the process of exchanging information which includes data, images, and codes of cheques by electronic means through Electronic Clearing Center at the Central Bank of Jordan and determining the net balances resulted from this process at a specific time.

The Central Bank of Jordan provides the service of cheques clearing for licensed banks in accordance with the Central Bank of Jordan Law No. 23 of 1917 and its amendments in paragraph (B) of Article (37).

Over the last years, and in consistent with its vision and mission, the Central Bank of Jordan has been developing this service consistently. It started by providing manual clearing service up to July 1997 then moved to automated clearing up to July 2007. Afterward, this service moved further into the great shift of providing electronic clearing and the implementation of collecting cheques on the same day at the banks level started as of 4/11/2007 until this date according to the following:

Cheques that are deposited by customers from 8:00 A.M until 1:00 P.M are collected in the same business day. The costumer is allowed to withdraw the amount of cheque in the next business day.
Cheques that are deposited by costumers after 1:00 P.M will be collected in the next business day session.

Objectives of Electronic Clearing:

To transfer from Automated Clearing System to Electronic Clearing System for cheques.
To stop dealing with paper cheques for clearing purposes at the depositing stage in banks.
To collect cheques in the same day in all parts of Jordan.
To increase confidence in cheques as a fulfillment tool.
To reduce as much as possible from the increase volume of returned checks.

Benefits of implementing Electronic Clearing System

For Banks
- Knowing prior specified time the bank’s financial position.
- Optimum use of funds at banks.
- Getting accurate information and statistics about cheques in addition to accurate and fast archiving system.
- Minimizing transfer paper cheques risk to and from banks.
- Ability to access to cheques copies and data through the ECC quickly and easily.
- The system works 24-hours a day and therefore there is plenty of time to send cheques regardless of their numbers.
For Customers
- Collect the cheque in the same depositing day.
- Have the knowledge whether the cheque is accepted or rejected in the same day.
- Debit the amount of cheque in the beneficiary’s account in the same day if the cheque deposited before 1:00 P.M or the next business day if deposited after 1:00 P.M.
- Increase confidence in cheques and their dealing.