An ABA number, also known as a routing number or routing transfer number, is a sequence of nine numeric characters used by banks in the United States to identify specific financial institutions. The American Bankers Association (ABA) developed the system in 1910 to facilitate the sorting, bundling, and delivering of paper checks to the drawers bank for debit to the drawers account. The ABA routing number is printed on the bottom of checks to identify the financial institution on which it was drawn.
Newer electronic payment methods continue to rely on ABA routing numbers to identify the paying bank or other financial institution. The Federal Reserve Bank uses ABA routing transit numbers in processing Fedwire funds transfers, and the ACH Network also uses ABA routing transit numbers in processing direct deposits, bill payments, and other automated money transfers.
An ABA routing number can be issued only to a federal or state-chartered financial institution that has been determined to be eligible for a master account by a Federal Reserve Bank. The assignment of a routing number does not expand or change in any way the powers of the financial institution as specified in its charter.
To find your routing number, you can check the bottom left-hand corner of your checks, or you can log into your bank account and look for your routing number in your account information.
