CHEQUES originated in ancient Greece, a country with one of the earliest banking systems in the world. The first cheque known to have been drawn at a British bank was for £10 made payable to the bearer by Nicholas Vanacker. It was dated 22 April 1659 and was paid through Messrs Clayton and Morris, bankers, of Cornhill.
Cheques have changed very little since the days of Mr Vanacker, retaining the same style, with the amount being written out first in words and then in figures. The original cheque was sold at Sotheby’s in December 1976 for £1,300. The earliest surviving printed cheque dates back to 4 March 1763. It was issued by Hoare’s Bank, the first to introduce paper money and cheques to England, for £5,000 made payable to David Roberts by John Calcroft, Army Agent.
Hoare’s also issued the first cheques with perforated counterfoils on 5 July 1864.
It was not until much later that cheques could be written out in British decimal currency. The first one was for £50.30. It was dated 4 March 1968 and cleared by Westminster Bank, Crawley, Sussex on 7 March.
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