In 2009 3.5 million cheques and 360,000 paper credits passed through the British interbank clearing system each working day.

These increased clarity and certainty when paying in cheques to a bank or building society account.

The 2-4-6 changes set a maximum time limit of two, four and six working days for each of the stages after paying in a cheque to a current or basic bank account.

For deposit or savings accounts the maximum time limit for withdrawal was longer (6 days, rather than 4).

The timescales also set maximum times when customers start earning interest on money paid in (2 days) and when it would be available for withdrawal.