Cheques/Instruments Holding Policy

Where applicable, the appropriate regulatory license is required to sell this product.

B2B Bank puts a hold on all cheques and instruments deposited to accounts as specified below.

Instruments deposited/drawn in Canada

Instruments in Canadian dollars deposited and withdrawn in Canada are held for a maximum period of five (5) business days after the day of deposit when deposited at an ATM mailed or delivered to us.

Exceptions

In certain circumstances, the maximum hold period does not apply. The following describes the circumstances under which we may hold funds for longer periods than those stated above:

  • An account has been open for less than 90 days
  • Anomalies with cheques/instruments that require further investigation
  • A deposit that the institution has reasonable grounds to believe is being made for illegal or fraudulent purposes in relation to the depositor's account
  • Cheques/instruments have been endorsed more than once
  • Cheques/instruments are stale-dated (i.e. cheque or other instruments that are deposited at least six months after the date of the cheque)
  • Cheques/instruments are not issued in Canadian currency

In addition, the maximum hold period does not apply in respect of a deposit made by an eligible enterprise1 (business account) if the institution has reasonable grounds to believe that there is a material increased credit risk, having regard to factors, such as:

(a) an escalating overdraft balance that is not being reduced by deposits received;

(b) a negative change in the credit score or other behaviour scores that may impact the credit risk of the enterprise;

(c) an unexplained change in the history of cheques or other instruments deposited to the account;

(d) a high numbers of cheques or other instruments deposited that are returned as dishonoured items from other institutions that may impact the available balance in the account; or

(e) notice of bankruptcy or of creditor action against the enterprise

1 An “eligible enterprise” is defined as a business with authorized credit of less than $1 million, fewer than 500 employees and annual revenues of less than $50 million.