AI agents for business finance: what they can and can't do
What AI agents can do in bookkeeping, close, collections and compliance today, where a person must stay in charge, and how to judge a product.
The short answer
An open cheque can be paid in cash over the counter to whoever presents it. A crossed cheque, marked with two parallel lines across its face, must be paid into a bank account instead; adding a bank's name makes it a special crossing payable only through that bank. The rules are in sections 77 to 83 of the Bills of Exchange Act.
Open and crossed, in one sentence each
An open cheque has no crossing. The paying bank can pay it in cash at the counter to the payee, or to anyone holding it properly, if the cheque is payable to bearer or has been endorsed. A crossed cheque carries two parallel lines across the face. It cannot be cashed at the counter; it must be paid through a bank account. That single change is why crossing is the standard advice whenever a cheque could be lost or stolen.
The types of crossing in the Act
The Bills of Exchange Act sets out the rules in Part III, which deals with cheques.
| Crossing | What it looks like | Effect | Section |
|---|---|---|---|
| General | Two parallel transverse lines, with or without the words "and company" (or an abbreviation) between them | Must be paid through a bank, not over the counter | 78(1) |
| Special | The name of a bank written across the face, with or without lines | Payable only to, or through, the named bank | 78(2) |
| "Not negotiable" added to a crossing | The words inside or beside the lines | The holder cannot give a better title than the person they took it from | 83 |
| "Account payee" or "A/C payee only" | Words added between the lines | Banking practice: the collecting bank credits only the named payee's account. The Act as we read it does not define this phrase | Practice |
Under section 79, the drawer can cross a cheque generally or specially, and if a cheque is uncrossed, the holder can cross it. Section 80 makes the crossing a material part of the cheque, so no one may obliterate or alter it except as the Act allows. Section 81(1) tells the paying bank to refuse a cheque that is crossed specially to more than one bank, subject to an exception for a bank acting as agent for collection.
What "not negotiable" does
Most cheques can be transferred by endorsement. A crossed cheque marked "not negotiable" can still be passed on, but section 83 says the person holding it does not have, and cannot give, a better title than the person they got it from. In plain terms: if the cheque was stolen and passed on, the person at the end of the chain cannot keep the money against the true owner. That protects the drawer and the original payee.
Protection for banks
The Act also protects banks that handle crossed cheques correctly. Under section 82, a paying bank that pays a crossed cheque in good faith and without negligence, in line with the crossing, is placed in the same position as if it had paid the true owner. Under section 77, a collecting bank that takes a cheque for collection in good faith and without negligence is protected too. These rules are why banks are strict about crossings: departing from them removes their protection.
Worked example
Example only. Funke writes a ₦250,000 cheque to her landlord, Mr Okafor, and crosses it with "A/C payee only" between two lines. The cheque is stolen from his mailbox. The thief cannot cash it at the counter because it is crossed, and the collecting bank should credit only an account in the name of the payee. If she had left it open and payable to bearer, a person presenting it at the drawee branch could have been paid in cash.
When to cross, and when an open cheque is used
- Cross every cheque you post, leave with someone or hand to a company.
- Add the payee's bank name (a special crossing) when you know where they bank and want it paid only there.
- Add "not negotiable" when you want to stop the cheque being passed on with good title.
- Use an open cheque only when the payee needs cash at the counter and you trust the route; some people use open "self" cheques to withdraw their own cash, which banks treat under their own counter rules.
Crossings also matter when you receive a cheque. If you are given a crossed cheque, you need a bank account in the payee's name to collect it. If the cheque is specially crossed to a bank where you have no account, ask the drawer to reissue it rather than trying to collect it elsewhere.
What to check first
- Draw the two parallel lines clearly across the face of the cheque before you hand it over.
- Write any words ("A/C payee only", a bank name, "not negotiable") between the lines.
- Do not alter a crossing on a cheque you have received; it is a material part.
- Use cheques from a current book. Since 1 August 2020 only cheques meeting the revised Nigerian Cheque Standard are accepted in automated clearing, according to a 2018 Nairametrics report.
- For how to complete the rest of the cheque, see how to write a cheque correctly.
Where Pryme fits
A transfer has no crossing to get wrong. Pryme shows the recipient's name before you send and you approve each payment. For when paper still makes sense, compare bank drafts and cheques.
Questions people ask
What does a crossed cheque mean?
A cheque with two parallel lines across its face. It cannot be cashed over the counter and must be paid into a bank account, under section 78 of the Bills of Exchange Act.
What is the difference between general and special crossing?
A general crossing is just the two lines, payable through any bank. A special crossing names a bank, and the cheque is payable only to or through that bank.
What does A/C payee only mean on a cheque?
It tells the collecting bank to credit only the account of the named payee. It is banking practice; the Act's sections on crossings do not define the phrase.
Can I cash a crossed cheque at the bank?
No. A crossed cheque must be paid into an account. Only an open cheque can be paid in cash at the counter.
Sources
- Bills of Exchange Act, Laws of the Federation (PLAC) · accessed Oct 2026
- Nairametrics: CBN revises the Nigerian Cheque Standard (25 Sep 2018) · accessed Oct 2026
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