CHECK CASHERS ASSOCIATION OF NEW YORK CELEBRATES
45TH ANNIVERSARY

Honors three industry leaders for service

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NEW YORK, NY, May 8, 2002 -- The Check Cashers Association of New York (CCANY) celebrated its 45^th Anniversary with a gala event at the Garden City Hotel, in Garden City, N.Y., on Saturday, May 4. CCANY is a not-for-profit trade association that serves financial service centers from Long Island to Buffalo.

“CCANY has accomplished a great deal in 45 years,” said Jim Eustace, president of the association. “What started as a small group of 33 check cashers in 1957 has grown to a membership of 145 companies representing over 475 stores and employing more than 2,700 people in New York.”

Eustace credits the growth of the industry to the continuing need for check cashing services in the state. He pointed to a number of studies, including one conducted by Dove Consulting in 2000 for the U.S. Treasury Department, that found that services provided by check cashers fill a vital niche not satisfied by traditional banks. The study concluded that the extended hours of operation, locations near public transportation, bilingual staff and other service-oriented features offered by check cashers attract consumers.

“I grew up in the Bronx,” said New York State Assemblywoman Aurelia Greene (D-Bronx), who spoke at Saturday’s event. “When the banks left, you [check cashers] stayed to serve us. You didn’t abandon our neighborhoods when poverty and crime became the norm.”

As part of the night’s festivities, CCANY honored three of its members for exemplary service and dedication to the industry with Distinguished Service Awards. The recipients were:

·    Stephen Wolf, of Montclair, N.J., treasurer of The Pay-O-Matic Corp., a Syosset, N.Y.–based check cashing company with 93 stores.

·    Henry F. Shyne, of Edgewater, N.J., executive director of CCANY and the Financial Service Centers of America (FiSCA), the national association of financial service centers.

·    James Eustace, of New York, N.Y., president of CCANY and of West Side Trading, a Manhattan–based check cashing company with two stores.

About CCANY

CCANY members provide New York communities with check cashing; access to money orders; money wire transfers; automatic teller machine access; the ability to make bank withdrawals and balance inquiries; cash advances; Social Security benefit payments; public assistance benefits; electronic bill payment services; electronic tax preparation and filing; public transportation fare and token sales; and motor vehicle license plate and title distribution. CCANY is the leading voice on legislative, regulatory and business issues that effect its members and the rights of consumers to access basic financial services in New York state.

CCANY and its members are recognized as leaders in the development and delivery of check cashing services. In Oct. 2001, New York Banking Department Superintendent Elizabeth McCaul assisted a CCANY member with the launch of a unique pilot program that allows the Bronx check casher to accept deposits and provide other banking services for an area credit union. The first program of its kind in the United States, the project is designed to provide increased access to financial services by existing credit union members and those who have been previously under served by traditional banking institutions.

In addition to its work to bring enhanced financial products and services to New Yorkers, CCANY has been making the neighborhoods of New York better places to live. CCANY, with the help of Travelers Express, has sponsored a scholarship program for deserving high seniors since 1996. To date, over $150,000 in scholarships have been awarded.

CCANY also raises money to help subsidize the purchase of school uniforms for needy public school children. In concert with Western Union, the association has raised $270,000 for this effort.

For more information about CCANY please visit www.ccanyinc.org. 

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Note:  Prior to May 2004, the Financial Service Centers of New York (FSCNY) was named the Check Cashers Association of New York (CCANY). Consequently, press releases and articles during that time period reflect the organization's CCANY name.