Federal Reserve Seeks Input on Future of Its Check-Processing Services

The Federal Reserve Board has launched a formal request for information (RFI) on the future of the Federal Reserve Banks’ check-processing services, opening a 90‑day public comment period to help decide whether to maintain, scale back, or potentially wind down these services

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What the Fed is asking

The Board is seeking input from banks, credit unions, businesses, consumers, and other stakeholders on how they use Fed check services today, how important those services are, and what the impact would be under different future strategies. Comments will inform an assessment of possible long‑term approaches before any concrete proposal or rule change is made, and additional comment rounds would occur if major changes are pursued.​

Why this is happening

Use of paper checks has been declining for years as digital payment options expand, while check fraud has risen and the Fed’s aging check infrastructure now requires substantial new investment to keep service quality at current levels. The Board wants to weigh the costs and risks of continuing to operate extensive check-processing services against the reduced but ongoing reliance on checks in some segments of the economy.​

Options on the table

The RFI outlines three illustrative paths:

• Skip major new investments, accepting gradually reduced reliability as systems age while holding operating costs roughly steady.​

• Invest significantly in check infrastructure to maintain or improve service, at the cost of higher ongoing expenses.​

• Substantially reduce or wind down Fed check services, cutting costs but shifting more responsibility to private-sector processors and users of checks.​

Internal debate at the Fed

The Board vote to issue the RFI was 6–1, with Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman dissenting. Bowman argued that the document appears to lean toward discontinuing Reserve Bank check services even though checks remain a meaningful payment method for many users, and she warned against prejudging the outcome of the public input process.​