What is a voided check? A guide for Bitcoin buyers

What does a voided check show?

A personal check commonly displays the account holder's name, a bank routing number and an account number. Marking it VOID leaves those details available for account setup while making the paper unsuitable as a normal payment. Chase's voided-check guide explains this use for direct deposit.

In a purchase review, ask what the recipient needs to establish. Identifying an account, checking who owns it, explaining where money came from and authorizing a debit are different questions. One document may not answer all of them.

A check also does not establish your current available balance. A printed name or routing number is not, by itself, confirmation that the purchase provider approved your account or received money.

How do you void a check?

1. Use a check for the account the recipient has asked you to verify.
2. Write VOID across the front in blue or black ink. Leave the routing and account numbers readable.
3. Check that the requested name and account details are legible in the copy you will provide.
4. Use the recipient's independently verified secure submission process. Keep or dispose of the original securely.

These preparation steps follow Chase's explanation. Do not fill in a payable amount or sign a blank check as a substitute for a document request. If a request is unclear, clarify it before supplying a usable payment instrument.

Do not draw a check in an image editor or change the name on a bank document. If the underlying bank record is wrong, ask the bank to correct it and issue the appropriate document.

What if you do not have a checkbook?

Ask the recipient whether it accepts a bank verification letter, an official account-details document or a bank-issued direct-deposit form. Confirm the exact fields it needs before ordering checks or requesting a letter.

Relay's bank verification letter instructions provide one example: its letter includes the selected account's details, account holder information and a banker signature. This describes Relay's document, not a universal format or acceptance rule.

A screenshot may omit the account holder, full account number or bank identification the reviewer needs. Conversely, a full statement may disclose more transactions than the request requires. Ask which document and redactions are acceptable rather than guessing.

Voided check, bank letter or statement?

Scroll across the table to see all columns.

If the question concerns how you obtained the money, read the source-of-funds guide. If the question concerns permission to collect it, read the ACH authorization guide.

Does sharing a voided check verify the account?

It can support a review, but sharing the document is not the same as completing the provider's verification process. Nacha's account-validation resource describes validation requirements and services for online ACH debits; a document upload alone should not be treated as confirmation that every required check passed.

The provider might instead use a bank connection, micro-deposits or another process. Follow the offered method and wait for its result. Do not start a second verification method unless instructed.

Hypothetical example: a reviewer asks for proof of the account name. You provide a bank letter, and the reviewer accepts it. That answers the document request. It does not mean a $500 debit was authorized, a wire was sent or any BTC was delivered.

Before sending the document

A voided check still contains sensitive bank information. Chase advises protecting it and disposing of unneeded copies securely. Keep the image out of public posts and shared links that anyone can open.

Verify who requested it, the order or review reference, the purpose and the secure upload destination. A message that says ‘verification’ is not enough. Do not send online-banking passwords, one-time codes or wallet recovery words with a bank document.

For a wire, your own bank document is not the receiving account's instructions. Use the wire-instruction verification checklist for that separate step.