Cashier's Check

A cashier's check is written and funded by a bank or other financial institution, then signed by one of their representatives to be payable to a specified recipient. When purchasing a cashier's check, the customer pays the bank the full amount of the check, along with a small service charge in most cases. Unlike a personal check, using a cashier's check ensures that the purchaser's funds are available for payment to the recipient as the check's amount is first secured in the issuing bank's own account before the bank then signs it over to the recipient. In this way they differ from certified checks, which are also guaranteed by the issuing bank but instead drawn from a portion of the customer's account that was reserved for the check amount. Also, while a stop-payment order can be applied to cashier's checks, it cannot usually be placed on a certified check.