Digital Federal Credit Union (DCU) is among a small number of US banking institutions to launch a mobile deposit system, Mobile PC Deposit, where members can take a photo of a cheque and deposit it securely using an Apple iPhone or Google Android mobile device, DCU officials said this week.
"This is huge," said Denise Gonthier, DCU's administrative services manager. "It's a very tech-savvy world out there, and we want to give members what they want. They can now deposit a cheque from anywhere, at any time."
DCU with branches in Massachusetts and New Hampshire, worked with Vertifi Software LLC to develop the system, in which members use their iPhone or Android to take a digital photo of the front and back of the cheque. The cheque is then processed electronically from start to finish, Gonthier said.
The applications use the same digital security encryption as DCU's PC Deposit, a program launched in 2008 that lets users scan cheque from their home computers and deposit them safely, Gonthier said. Since the PC Deposit program started, about 7,600 members have used it every month, and about $300 million has been deposited since the launch two years ago.
In the few weeks Mobile PC Deposit has been live, about 2,500 users have already tried it out, Gonthier added.
Applications are available as free downloads through the Apple App Store and Google's Android Market.
Plans are in the works to build systems for BlackBerry users, as well as other mobile devices. "It is our intention to roll this particular application out full-force," said John LaHair, DCU public relations manager.
The PC Mobile Deposit system is "a great application of advanced technology," said Dan Egan, president of the Massachusetts Credit Union League.
Convenience is the top factor in a customer's decision to select a bank or credit union, so staying on the cutting edge of technology is important, Egan said. Egan uses an iPhone, and said he does a lot of his banking and bill-paying with the device.