Statistics, Facts, & Such

The average mortgage rate in October, 1998 was 6.68% - a 30 year low. By June, 2000, the average rate is 8.40%, and appears steady, according to a study done by HSH Associates, Butler, NJ.
American Banker, 6/12/00

A poll by Synergistics Research Corp in Atlanta, GA showed consumers use credit cards 28% of the time; checks 27%; cash 24% and debit cards 17% of the time as payment methods. Respondents to the poll also revealed that in one month, on the average, a consumer writes 20.1 checks; does 12.8 credit card transactions; 11.1 debit card transactions; and 6.2 ATM transactions.
American Banker, 6/12/00

The Internal Revenue Service says 53,000 people paid their taxes with credit cards in 1999. At the rate they were being paid by credit card in 2000, more than four times that number paid this year's taxes that way.
Wall Street Journal, 3/15/00

Electronic filing has increased 16% over last year, and direct deposit of income-tax refunds is up 22%.
Wall Street Journal, 3/15/00

Assuming a financial institution generates 1.5% profit on deposits (net after taxes), it would require $l million in additional deposits to offset a loss of $15,000. A loss of $300,000 would require $20 million in new deposits to offset.

SWR Worldwide for Cyota did a nationwide survey of Internet users and deducted that online security is a definite competitive advantage when responses showed 79% of Internet users said they'd be "much more likely" to shop online if they were convinced their credit card information was secure.
AOL News, 5/16/00

About 30-45% of all check cashing activity at the teller line is the result of non-account holders cashing checks.
Strategic Alliances, InnoVentry, May, 2000

The nation's financial clearing houses handled 3.1 billion direct deposits in 1999, including about half of all private industry payrolls, 97 percent of federal government salaries and nearly four out of five Social Security and veterans' checks.
NACHA, Herndon, VA, May 18, 2000

Copyright © 2000 Bankers' Hotline. Originally appeared in Bankers' Hotline, Vol. 10, No. 6, 2/00