A dozen community banks in Missouri have teamed up to form a surcharge-free automated teller machine network and hope to enroll hundreds of banks and thrifts nationwide in the next few years.
Participating banks will pay a one-time fee of $300, regardless of how many ATMs they have, to Computer Services Inc. of Paducah, Ky., the processor running the network. Customers of any participating institution will be able to use all of the participants' ATMs for free.
The initial members have 68 ATMs.
Debbie Williams, a senior vice president with the $88 million-asset FirstService Bank in Crestwood, Mo., said in Computer Services' press release that she hopes expansion of the network will provide free access to thousands of ATMs coast to coast.
The 12 current bank members are all customers of the processor, but Ms. Williams said that is not a condition of membership.
