P19-6A West Bank is a regional bank in California that also processes checks for smaller banks and
Question:
P19-6A West Bank is a regional bank in California that also processes checks for smaller banks and insurance companies. This results in mounds of paperwork, because West Bank tracks which checks have been deposited and which accounts have been debited or credited. When a customer complains that a check was not deposited to its account, a West Bank clerk takes the complaint over the phone and fills out a paper form. The complaint form triggers a long search through piles of canceled checks in a warehouse to find the check in question. West Bank then compares this check to its computer and paper records. West Bank is considering moving this process to the Web. When a customer has a ques- tion, its employee simply uses a Web browser and a password to access West Bank's databases. The customer's employee pulls up a computerized image of the check in question to verify the amount and then queries West Bank's databases to locate the mistake. If required, a credit to the customer's account can be issued immediately. The Web-based system will require the bank to invest $74,000 in a new server and check-scanning equipment. eNow! consultants will charge $110,000 for the software and consulting fees to get the system running. The system will also require increasing the bank's Internet capacity. The present value of this cost is $20,000. West Bank has identified two benefits of this project. First, several bank clerks freed from searching through stacks of canceled checks will be reassigned to other more responsible and interesting tasks, which will lead to cost savings with a present value of $156.000. Second, the new system's additional capacity will enable West Bank to accept more check-processing busi- ness, which should lead to additional profits with a present value of $39.600. Required Does a cost-benefit analysis justify the Web-based system? Explain why, showing supporting calculations.
Step by Step Answer:
Accounting
ISBN: 9780130906991
5th Edition
Authors: Charles T. Horngren, Walter T. Harrison, Linda S. Bamber, Betsy Willis, Becky Jones