About one year ago, the Federal Reserve completed its first test of the e-Manifest. In this test, the Federal Reserve electronically accepted a deposit from a financial institution that was then delivered by a Cash-in-Transit (CIT) carrier. The information received by the Federal Reserve provided details of what would be delivered by the CIT carrier, including the bag number, amount of the deposit by denomination, and the financial institution’s information. The success of this test led to the creation of e-Manifest Readiness Program (ERP). As part of this program, the Federal Reserve and its Cash Visibility team help others in the industry reach this step.
Today, many in the financial services community continue to progress toward a more transparent cash supply chain using the ERP. When the Federal Reserve first rolled out the Cash Visibility Initiative it stated that the purpose was “bringing greater transparency and efficiency to cash supply chain logistics by developing a framework that will identify, track, and share data about cash packages as they move between cash supply chain organizations.”
The outcome of this type of framework is an overall improvement in how cash is handled. Cash visibility offers benefits to all players in the industry. Improved accuracy with a reduction in manual data entry and the errors that come with it is just one. Others include the opportunity to access real-time information as cash moves through the supply chain and the ability to resolve discrepancies quickly.
From a CIT carrier’s perspective, other benefits including improved loss prevention and more efficient exchanges as well as the ability to downstream information needed for accurate billing. During the Federal Reserve’s testing with CIT carriers, the e-Manifest reduced dock time by half, which is another benefit.
Where Are Your Partners On The Road To Cash Visibility?
Without a doubt, the efforts by The Federal Reserve and those participating in the ERP will ultimately change entire industry. Now might be the ideal time to make sure that your financial institution and its partners are on the same page by asking a few questions.
- What efforts have you made with the cash visibility initiative?
- What’s the next step for you?
- What’s the time frame like?
Rochester is a leader in adopting and implementing industry best practices. For this reason, the company is moving toward becoming Cash Visibility compliant. In addition to obtaining our company prefix and global location numbers (GLNs) for all branches and cash vaults, Rochester has partnered with a Fintech, that will support the adoption of the e-Manifest.
As a member of the Federal Reserve’s Cash Advisory Council, Rochester continues to support the work done by the Cash Visibility Subcommittee.
