BRANCH PRACTICE / CASE 01
The 4 p.m. wire
A new hire arrives with a $2,400 cashier’s check and an urgent request. You’re the one at the teller window. What do you ask first?
- Free
- About 7 minutes
- Two ways the case can unfold
01 / THE ARRIVAL
Jordan steps up to your window.
Watch the 15-second opener or read what Jordan says. Then make your first decision.
02 / THE SIMULATION
You make the call.
Make a choice to see what Jordan says next. New evidence enters the case as you go.
03 / THE DEBRIEF
Bring it back to your branch.
Watch Jay’s full case breakdown · 1:24
Read the video transcript
Jordan starts a new job on Monday. At least, that is what the recruiter promised. Today, Jordan is at your window with a cashier’s check for two thousand four hundred dollars and a question: Can I send the equipment payment now?
The check looks professional. The payee matches Jordan’s name, and the written and numeric amounts agree. Those details help you inspect the item. They cannot establish that the bank issued it.
Jordan shows you the recruiter’s message. Send seventeen hundred dollars to our supplier by four. Keep the rest for training. The sender wants a separate wire, to a third party, under a deadline.
Now Jordan says, my app already shows the deposit as available. Availability tells you what the bank allows Jordan to use. It does not establish that the bank collected the check. If the item comes back unpaid, the deposit credit may be reversed while an outgoing wire is already on its way.
Your job at the window is to ask what Jordan was told to do, verify the item through your institution’s approved independent channel, and follow your escalation procedure. If money already went out, get the appropriate payments or fraud team involved promptly.
You have the paper, the message, and the account status. Which clue would change what you say next? Take the window and make the call.
What could I say to Jordan?
“I’m glad you brought this to us. The request to send money to a supplier before the check is verified gives us a reason to review it. Let’s follow our verification process before you send the wire.”
What belongs in the handoff?
“Jordan deposited a $2,400 cashier’s check from a recruiter and was asked to wire $1,700 to an equipment supplier by 4 p.m. Jordan says the wire hasn’t been sent. The app shows funds available. The issuer hasn’t confirmed the check.”
What if the money already went out?
Use your institution’s escalation process and involve the designated payments or fraud team promptly. Share the payment amount, recipient details permitted under policy, timing, and what you verified. The receiving team can assess the options.
What should my team discuss?
Which approved source can you use to verify a check at your branch? Who owns the next step if you can’t confirm issuance? Practice a one-sentence handoff with a colleague.
This fictional exercise is educational practice. Follow your institution’s procedures for verification, escalation, holds, and customer communications.