Deposit Accounts and Transaction Handling
This domain, Deposit Accounts and Transaction Handling, tests ownership setup, funds availability, electronic transfers, and transaction accuracy. Expect questions on account titling, holds, error resolution, cash reporting, and negotiable items.
Account ownership and disclosures
Share accounts may be owned as single, joint with right of survivorship, payable-on-death, trust, or UTMA. The ownership category affects access and share insurance. Staff must explain terms clearly: dividends, fees, minimums, overdraft options, and stop-payment rules. For consumer debit card transactions, Regulation E governs error resolution and limits liability; overdraft fees for ATM and one-time debit card transactions require the member’s affirmative opt-in. For checks, Regulation CC sets availability rules and notice requirements for exceptions.
Transactions and reporting
Tellers verify endorsements, watch for altered or counterfeit items, and balance daily. Cash transactions over $10,000 trigger a Currency Transaction Report; structuring-splitting cash to avoid reporting-is prohibited. Suspicious activity may require a SAR. Dormant accounts follow state escheatment rules, and deceased-account handling requires careful document review.
Worked example
A member deposits $12,000 cash and asks, “Can you put $9,000 on this receipt and $3,000 on another? I don’t want paperwork.” Reasoning: the request is intended to avoid a CTR, which is structuring. Staff must not help split the transaction to evade reporting. Complete the deposit as presented, file the required CTR, and consider whether the request is suspicious enough to escalate for SAR review. Do not tell the member how to avoid future reporting.
Traps
Do not treat a hold as optional or skip the required notice. Do not quote Regulation E provisional-credit timelines from memory without checking policy. Do not assume joint account access equals survivorship. Do not let a member’s request override reporting duties.