DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION OF A COMPUTERIZED TRANSACTION RECEIPT GENERATING SYSTEM FOR AN ATM MACHINE

ABSTRACT

This project is aimed at designing and implementing a computerized transaction receipt generating system for an ATM for Union Bank of Nigeria Plc, Enugu.

Specifically the study covered the activities of financial institution in mobilizing cash payment and giving the larger part of it to customers who wish to do their cash transactions electronically in Union Bank of Nigeria Plc, Enugu. In a bid to successfully carryout system with a view and motive to finding out it’s short comings. This attempt enabled the researcher to design and implement a computerized transaction receipt generating system for cash transacting that would, if well implemented help to highly uplift the financial operations of Union of Nigeria Plc. Enugu.

CHAPTER ONE

The word “ATM” is an acronym for Automated Teller Machine. The ATM machine is an electronic machine used in financial institutions e.g. Banks, Mini-marts etc and social organizations e.g. Nite Clubs, Amusement Parts, Sub-ways (train) etc. Mostly for dispensation of cash and other cash other cash transactions. The ATM is a stagnant electronic machine i.e. it is not easily relocated from one surface area to another. It is a machine that is purposely built for easing stress and reducing the long queues in the banks and other financial institutions. The ATM issues instructions with several alternatives and options in the terms of payment, whether the transaction is about checking balance, withdrawal and so on. The modality for this is clearly specified in the ATMs mode of operations.

1.1    HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF ATM

 The ATM machine was built and has been in use in Europe for many years because Europe as an advanced continent have changed their life style from manual to electronic means. In Europe, Money, time and life are of great value and that is why the ATM was built in order to save time, energy and secure lives and valuable properties. Since Africa as a continent and Nigeria in particular is rather manual (cash in pocket), not electronic (cash in electronic cards) e.g. Master card, ATM Card, Total Fuel top card etc.

As time went on, bankers, tax collectors and travelers discovered that it was rather very risk carrying money in one’s pocket at all times, form this discovery, researchers and scientists sat down and unanimously agreed to build a modern cash conveying technology which will reduce the risk of loss of lives and damage of prosperities.  At this juncture, the use of electronic cash card was introduced. Since the advent of this ATM and other electronic cash conveying cards, customary and travelers no longer have to bother about the queues in banks and but stations because all it takes is to have a ATM account with a  passport in your account (ATM) and you will have nothing to worry about.

1.3    STATEMENT OF PROBLEMS

Although the reactions of customers towards the use of the ATM could be approximately 85.5% as the output percentage, people only enjoy using the ATM very much because customers stand the chance of being able to withdraw their money(ies) in a matter of minutes, there are no queues on the ATM Stand and withdrawal can be made on the ATM as many times as possible in a day, provided your account is being updated after each withdrawal.

Notwithstanding the durability and excellent performance of the ATM machine, it can also be very boring to use at times because it could be slow in booting due to it’s microprocessor, faulty if it has been long serviced or as a result of the A.P.I (Application Protocol Interface). Application Protocol Interface is process whereby the ATM sometimes rejects some customers to withdraw money at ATM stands with their ATM cards and after slotting the cards and their passwords, the ATM rejects it. This situation is not because the ATM is faulty or malfunctioning but it is due to fact that the ATM operator or the bank manager was ignorant of the time the money loaded into the ATM that day finished and failure to reload the machine with another huge sum of money, the machine will no longer accept any more cards and passwords. As a result of this, the customer will be highly disappointed as this problem is not from the machine but rather from the person in-charge of the ATM. But once money is reloaded into the machine, the payment transaction will continue immediately. Another problem of the ATM is the lack of ability to sort currencies (foreign) in to ATM fitness which is the work of the ATM sorting Machine. The ATM sorting is another new machine which is built to sort foreign currency(ies) into ATM fitness i.e. the machine has the ability to convert Dollars  into Naira to pay customers who have dollars in their accounts and wishes to be paid in Naira or Naira to Dutchmarks.

One of the major problems of operating the ATMs in a country like ours is Inter-operability.  Inter-operability is the process whereby an ATM is inter-switched. Interswitching is the process whereby certain banks come together with the agreement to have a sort of link-up whereby a customer with a ATM account in Union Bank or even standard Trust Bank can go to First Bank or GT Bank (Guaranty Trust) to withdrawn money in their ATM machine using his Union Bank or Standard Trust ATMs card and the transaction will not only be recorded in the customer’s Union Bank ATM account but will also reflect on the customer’s ATMs account. But in a case where the bank is not inter-switched, then the cash withdrawal of a Union Bank’s ATM account in Enugu (Garden Avenue) can only be made in any other branch of that particular bank, say Union Bank P/H, Union Bank Abuja,  Union Bank Ibadan and so on. Examples of some interswitched banks are First bank of Nigeria Plc, Fidelity bank Lagos, etc.

1.3    AIMS AND OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

The aims of this study which is the Design and implementation of a computerized transaction receipt generating system for an ATM machine and the objectives are underlisted as follows:

i.             Redesign and Re-Structure Our Means of Carrying Money: As said earlier, our economy is cash driven and in order to resign our means of carrying money when we are going for shopping, the ATM machine had to be built so as to save us from a lot of troubles carrying heavy and huge amount of cash from shop to shop and from market to market all in the name of shopping. Take for instance, in Europe, Asia or America people go for shopping with up to $300,000(Dollars), they do not have to carry big luggage’s containing this money but all they go with is just their credit card(s) which contains certain information(s) like the amount of money being coded into this card in an electronic form, password(s) and also bank account number(s). after this shopping, the total amount of things bought will be calculated and entered into this credit card, subtracting it from the previous and getting the actual balance and at the end of the transaction the customer goes home with the goods and the credit card since goods have been bought and paid for electronically. 

ii.           Reduce Risks of Conveying Money: Most times when money is to be transferred from Union bank to Central bank, the bank (Union bank) will have to provide bullion vans and armed policemen for security reasons so as the safe guard this money and make sure it gets to its destination (Central bank). At times, these policemen are being attacked and killed by highway robbers and the bullion vans are also being robbed. But in a case whereby the money(ies) belongs to a wealthy man i.e . politician or Governor, who in his affluence wants to transfer a huge sum of money from his Union  bank account to his new or current first bank account, this transfer does not need to be done manually (by bullion vans) rather, it is being done electronically (cash transfer i.e. money gram). It is only a matter of making phone call (s) and the money will be transferred in minutes.

iii.          Enhance Our Banking System Through Information Technology: The ATM was built to enhance our banking sector with the help of information technology in the sense that the issue of the information technology through the help of the internet has provided us with a lot of facilities like E-banking, E-commerce, M-banking and so on.

a.            E-banking is the process whereby a customer can now stay in his house and request for several cash transfers from his account to other accounts without going to the bank personally to conduct this transaction.

b.           E-commerce is also known as electronic commerce which is a situation whereby a customer can also sit at home and get informed with daily exchange rates.

c.            M-banking is a situation where a customer with his prepaid account of his telephone network can get his bank’s statement of account anytime on his mobile cellphone.

iv.          Enhance Our Social Lives Through Information Technology: ATMs were built specially to enhance our social lives e.g. When a traveler is cash trapped, all he needs to do is to go to the ATM centre of the bus station and get himself paid by the machine provided the traveller has up to the amount he is requesting for in his account. Another instance, is the case of an individual in the night club say Ikoyi night club Lagos which is ATM equipped. The customer who has no money to sponsor himself at the club just goes the machine and types in a certain amount and the machine will automically display the cash from the cash slot. ATMs are also built in amusement parks for customer’s self operations. 

v.            Develop Our Economy in General: ATMs are built to enhance and promote our standard of living i.e. to reduce our love for carrying cash and increase our interest in realizing the need for information i.e. doing things electronically (at the speed of light), and saving time as well.

1.4    SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The development of a computerized transaction receipted generating system for an ATM machine by Union Bank of Nigeria Plc will eliminate the problems afflicted with the manual system. In other words, the method when adopted will help improve on the efficiency of cash transaction operations.

The advent of the ATMs has helped our society and financial institutions to dispense cash to individual customers and saving the customers the stress of standing on the queues for a very long time. It has also helped change our economy from it’s cash-driven nature to a more developed electronic way of cash conveyance and withdrawal.

The scope of this project is restricted to only Union bank of Nigeria Plc which is the case study for this project. Considering Union bank of Nigeria Plc, the cash transaction system is restricted only to the -

1.           Payment receipts and /or tellers

2.           Withdrawal slips and /or tellers

However, there may be companies that maintain different sources of receipts or tellers. But within this project, I concentrate only on the payments and withdrawals. Their different scopes are written below.

Scope for Payment

From the interview with the ATM operator, the organization does not keep any record on credits when payments are made. Therefore, the project will not make any provision for credit in the payment.

Hence, one can say that within the existing operation Union bank of Nigeria Plc avoids payment on credit to avoid keeping much records that most often conflict matters.

Scope for Withdrawals

The organization maintains a particular record of withdrawals for all customers and dealers companies that withdraw from them) that withdraw on cash. It also maintains a separate customer’s withdrawer’s creditor file, and a separate buyer’s (customer) withdrawer’s debtors file therefore, the project will handle all of the above as far as withdrawal is concerned. Thus the organization maintains one payment data base file and one withdrawal database file and one withdrawal database file, a total of two database files.

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