It was a breakthrough in money transfer history. This transition or more commonly known as, an electronic funds transfer (EFT) would change everything in the payments landscape. ATMs (Automated Teller Machines) were introduced at this point in the course of history.

Money transfer generally refers to one of the following cashless modes of payment or payment systems:

• Electronic funds transfer, an umbrella term mostly used for bank card-based payments
• Wire transfer, an international expedited bank-to-bank funds transfer
• Giro, also known as direct deposit
• Money order, transfer by postal cheque, money gram or others

It can also refer to the following cash-based wire transfer systems:

• al-Barakat, an informal money transfer system originating in the Arab world
• Hawala (also known as hundi), an informal system primarily used to send money to and from the Middle East, North Africa, the Horn of Africa, and India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal
• Remittance, a transfer of money by a foreign worker to his or her home country
• Currency exchange, transfer for of one currency to another

Electronic funds transfer

Electronic funds transfer (EFT) are electronic transfer of money from one bank account to another, either within a single financial institution or across multiple institutions, via computer-based systems, without the direct intervention of bank staff.

According to the United States Electronic Fund Transfer Act of 1978 it is a funds transfer initiated through an electronic terminal, telephone, computer (including on-line banking) or magnetic tape for the purpose of ordering, instructing, or authorizing a financial institution to debit or credit a consumer’s account. ^[1]

EFT transactions are known by a number of names across countries and different payment systems. For example, in the United States, they may be referred to as “electronic checks” or “e-checks”. In the United Kingdom, the term “bank transfer” and “bank payment” are used, while in several other European countries “giro transfer” is the common term