It’s hard to get solid info on this. Yes, cheques are very unpopular. But I’m looking for concrete info. Has anyone seen a cheque being used in the past five years (outside of a museum)?

A young banker just told me cheques do not exist. I said “what about cashier’s cheques?” Response: all cheques are gone - non-existent. A banker should know but maybe this young banker is speculating on the basis of never seeing one.

The linked page shows Ing’s fees for cheque processing, which suggests the banker I spoke to may be misinformed. What is a “Circular cheque”? Is that the same as a personal check or is it a banker’s cheque? (edit: possible partial answer)

People were saying cheques are gone 10 years ago, but I know it was misinfo then at least in terms of banker’s cheques. Suppose banker’s cheques are really gone (which was predicted 10 years ago). How are people making a down-payment on a house these days? Electronic transfers are not instant. IIRC even the fastest transfers take hours to execute. A house deal involves the simultaneous exchange of money and signatures at a meeting that could go as quick as 45 minutes. Only a banker’s draft (cheque) can accommodate that. There is a reason why a screenshot of an electronic transfer often has a phrase like “this is not proof of payment”.

One problem I hope a cheque will solve is a creditor is demanding payment and they refuse cash. I refuse to open a bank account just to pay them. bPost has problems. So I’m looking for more options. I wonder if any bank would give a banker’s draft in exchange for cash, and I could perhaps deliver the cheque by hand or by registered mail.