I would like to hear how other banks handle this information.

We are going through some changes to streamline our process and also make it easier for the frontline staff. We have acquired two banks and are working on the third for later this year and we find that we all describe "Ownership" of accounts a little differently. For example, in trying to come up with uniformity, some here would like to use "Primary" or "Joint or" in the system and just have the signature card reflect whether or not it is a "tenancy by the entirety" type of ownership or whether or not there is a beneficiary. We have always had the system and the signature card match when it came to ownership type so this suggestion is new to me. As in the past we would still have to pull the signature card to get the name of the beneficiary or to see if it was a spouse relationship. Am I over-thinking this.... as long as the signature card is correct it shouldn't matter? I think it would make pulling reports difficult if needed by ownership type.

I appreciate your opinions and input.

Your core system and signature card should match. This allows front line employees to understand the account setup.