[4ndrewl]

Based in the UK, some of these answers are absolutely wild. It's probably 20 years since I've written a cheque - certainly we don't routinely have chequebooks any more.

Pretty much everything is done through electronic transfers - either Direct Debits, which occur on a regular (usually monthly) basis, or ad-hoc payments a straightforward transfer which are rated to go through within a few hours, but which usually happens within 1 minute.

Does anyone know what conditions need to be in place for this level of convenience to take place?

It does mean we're liable to pesky IT issues though: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cd9qzg92g72o