In place at 624 credit unions is some form of remote depositcapture that allows members to deposit checks from any locationusing a desktop scanner, high-speed scanner or mobile smartphonecamera.

According to Callahan & Associates Inc., that figure, as ofMarch 31, is a small but growing slice of RDC adoption as more CUs realize the need to become tech savvy,provide convenience and successfully compete with other financialinstitutions, experts say.

Larry Middleman, president/CEO of the Portland, Ore.-basedbusiness services CUSO CU Business Group LLC, said he believes RDCwill one day be just as much of a necessity as debit cards aretoday. 

“This product will be a standard way of banking, and I'mconvinced of that,” Middleman said. “It's a simple, easy option,both for consumers and business owners.”

Last year, CUBG formed an alliance with NetDeposit LLC, makingthe company's NDPro processing services available to the CUSO's 366CU members. NetDeposit provides payment technology solutions. InAugust 2010, its assets were acquired by BankServ, a banking andpayment technology company. According to NetDeposit, a wholly ownedsubsidiary of Zions Bancorp., it would continue to operate underits brand this year. 

Middleman said based on a recent CUBG survey, 90% of the CUsserved by the CUSO either have RDC now or plan to implement it inthe near future.  

Andrew Tilbury, chief marketing officer for the Vista,Calif.-based Bluepoint Solutions Inc., a provider of RDC, item processingand document management services, said the remote tool will becomea necessity for those who want to keep up with theircompetition.

“As larger financial institutions add RDC to their portfolios,it will put pressure on those that are not,” Tilbury said.

One CU on top of this growing trend is the $99 million Torrance Community Credit Union in Torrance, Calif., whichlaunched DeposZip RDC in 2009 and DeposZip Mobile in 2010, boththrough the Vertifi Software subsidiary of Burlington,Mass.-based Eastern Corporate Federal CreditUnion. 

DeposZip RDC allows check depositing via desktop scanners whileDeposZip Mobile, allows members to make deposits straight from aniPhone or Android application.

Torrance Community CU Operations Manager Tillie Broadstone saidRDC benefits members who deposit checks frequently or do not liveclose to a branch. Of its 6,500 members, 250 are signed up for RDC,and in a recent one-month period, they made 180 RDC depositstotaling $100,000. 

“We're small, and only through technology can we seem big,”Broadstone said.

The $499 million Freedom Credit Union adopted CO-OP FinancialServices' My Deposit Mobile in May giving members iPhone check deposit access.

As of June, 118 of the 56,000 members served by the Warminster,Pa.-based Freedom CU used the service depositing a total of$84,000. The addition of an RDC service for use with desktop andhigh-speed scanners next year is also beingconsidered. 

“My Deposit Mobile furthers our goal of providing fast, helpfulservice to our members,” Freedom CU CEO Lee MacMinn said. 

RDC members fall into two categories: consumers, who tend tolike mobile deposit services for their convenience and “coolfactor,” and business owners, who receive numerous checks each day,according to Middleman. 

“There's clearly more interest and potential on the businessside, and that's because of the nature of how a business doesdeposit transactions,” Middleman said. “They have a high volume andfrequency of business check deposits.”

But Tilbury pointed out that as a whole, CUs don't serve a wholelot of business owners. He views marketing RDC to business ownermembers as part of a larger initiative to draw business owners toCUs in the first place. 

“There isn't as much comfort among CUs in marketing to businessowners,” Tilbury said. “Marketing RDC to consumers is a natural fitin their profile.”

In looking for a provider, Middleman said CUs should seek outone that offers good software in addition to operational andtechnical support and superb risk management controls. RDC doescomes with its own set of risks including the possibility ofduplicate deposits, check read errors and fraud. “Credit unionsunderestimate the level of expertise that's needed to implementthis,” Middleman said.

Middleman said integrating RDC services into a hosted onlinebanking system, as opposed to accessing them throughvendor-provided software that funnels funds into accounts via ACH,is too costly for some CUs. Infrequent check usage or the fear thatthe service isn't secure may also be obstacles.

“It's a big project, and for a lot of them, it just doesn't fitonto their plate right now,” Middleman said.