Checkable deposits are comprised of negotiable bank deposits that along with currency function as the medium of exchange for an economy. The official money supply for the U.S. economy contains almost equal portions of currency and checkable deposits. Because checkable deposits are used to conduct transactions these are also referred to as transactions deposits in many official banking circles.

The exhibit to the right illustrates the role checkable deposits play in the M1 money supply for the U.S. economy.

Payable on Demand

This mechanism makes checkable deposits an ideal mechanism to make payment for the purchase of goods and services. A buyer, such as a typical consumer like Duncan Thurly, gives Mega Mart Discount Super Center a check for $18.37 in exchange for a loaf of bread, a gallon of milk, a garden hose, and a bag of licorice. This check instructs Duncan's bank (OmniBank) to withdraw $18.37 from Duncan's account and give it to Mega Mart. In theory, this could entail that OmniBank give Mega Mart $18.37 in paper bills and metal coins. In practice, this usually involves the transfer of $18.37 from Duncan's account to Mega Mart's account.

Traditional commercial banks were the first institutions to offer checkable deposits. In fact, traditional commercial banks were the only institutions to offer such deposits for several decades. In recent years, other depository institutions (savings and loan associations, credit unions, and mutual savings banks) began issuing their own types of checkable deposits. They used different names, but the accounts all functioned the same.

A Variety

• Demand Deposits: These are standard checking accounts maintained by commercial banks. They pay no interest on balances and as the name indicates, the funds can be withdrawn "on demand," which is accomplished by writing a check. Demand deposits on the only type of checkable deposits that business can legally have.


• Negotiable Orders of Withdrawal (NOW): These are "checking" accounts that were originally offered by mutual savings banks and savings and loan associations. The title "negotiable order of withdrawal" basically describes the function of a traditional demand deposit. A depositor "orders" the bank to "withdraw" an amount "negotiated" between the depositor and the third party receiving the payment. The title was designed to circumvent existing laws that prohibited mutual savings banks and savings and loan associations from offering demand deposits.


• Automatic Transfer Services: These are accounts that provide an automatic transfer of funds between an interest-paying savings account and a checking account. Such accounts work like this. A customer's checking account maintains a zero balance. When a check is written on the account, the necessary funds are transferred from the customer's savings account. This allows the bank to pay the depositor an interest on the savings (which is really checking) account, something that was not legal when ATS accounts were introduced.


• Share Drafts: These are "checking" accounts that were originally offered by credit unions. Like NOW accounts, share drafts were so named to circumvent regulations preventing credit unions from offering demand deposits. The "share" part came from the fact that credit unions were mutually owned by the customers, each owned a "share" in the credit union. The "draft" part resulted because regular checks were often referred to as "bank drafts."