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Electronic Bank Statements 101: What is an E-Statement?

As banking technology becomes more sophisticated, there are more ways for you to use your online bank accounts. From setting up automatic payments to receiving your account statements online, knowing the advantages of online banking can put you ahead. If you’re looking for a more streamlined way to receive your account statements, electronic bank statements (e-statements) may be the right option for you. But what exactly is an e-statement? In this article, we’ll cover everything you need to know. Let’s go!

What is an E-Statement?

E-statement is a shortened word for electronic bank statements. An electronic bank statement (e-statement) contains everything that’d you see in a mailed account statement.

It would be sent from your bank or financial institution, and it would contain important information relevant to your account. For example, this could be your account number, account name, statement period, checking and saving account balances, and loan details. Learn how you can set up e-statements in online banking.

How Do They Work?

E-statements are sent digitally to your account and/or email address every month. Most of the time, you can directly access these digital statements through your financial or credit card institution’s mobile banking app or desktop banking service. There may even be cases where you can enroll in a digital and mailed account statement. However, these options are determined by your banking institution.

At First New York, you would receive your e-statement every month through online banking or our mobile app. You’d need to have registered for online banking and opted into e-statements before you could start getting e-statements. You also would not get the option to receive both an e-statement and a mailed statement. This is a plus because you don’t have to worry about getting the same information twice (which means less clutter and confusion!).

What Do They Look Like?

E-statements may have a different appearance based on where you’re receiving them from. For example, if you receive an e-statement from a bank and one from a credit card company these may look different for a few reasons.  

First off, the bank and credit card company will have different formats and styles, so you can easily recognize who you’re receiving from. Secondly, the information may vary greatly depending on your activity. For example, your account statement may detail your savings account history while your credit card statement will detail your spending habits. But, ultimately, they should look like the paper statements that you’ve been receiving in the mail.

What are examples of a First New York E-Statement?

If you’re a First New York Federal Credit Union member, your e-statement will look like and contain the same information that you’d get from an account statement mailed to your home.

It will include your first name, mailing address, date, account number, reporting activity time-frame, account summary overview, detailed account summary, and disclosures. It will also include First New York’s logo, address, and possibly some promotions that we’d like you to know about.

You can view an example of a First New York one here. In this example, you can see that the only activity being recorded is for a share savings account.

Now, let’s say you had multiple savings accounts, an all-access account, and a cash line. What would it look like?

Well, it’d be a lot longer and would detail the activity for all of those accounts. It would look something like this.

Why Should I Make the Switch to E-Statements?

Nowadays, more and more people are choosing to switch their mailed statements to digital versions. It’s convenient, helps shield their information from mail fraud, and is accessible from most places. Another desirable thing about e-statements is that a lot of banks are rewarding those who switch with unique perks or advantages. Discover the top five benefits of e-statements in the next part of this article! 

If you’re ready to make the switch and are a First New York member, use our e-statement setup guide today! Or, contact us today by texting or calling (518) 393-1326. The Contact Center is available Monday-Friday from 8 a.m. until 6 p.m. and on Saturday from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m.