What is Bank Routing Number and Where Can You Find It?

If you are wondering what bank routing number is and where to find one, you have come to the right place as we have discussed the same in detail.

What is a Bank Routing Number?

It is a nine-digit code that can be used to identify a specific financial institution in the USA. Banks use these routing numbers for funds transfer back and forth.

Types of Routing Number?

There are mainly two types of routing numbers as described below.

1. ABA Routing Number:

American Bankers Association (ABA) routing numbers are mainly used to make check transfers, and they are standardized for all banks. It is nine digits long with two digits between 00 and 12.

ABA routing number includes ACH routing number as well as domestic wire numbers. So basically, a smaller bank will only have one routing number, whereas a larger scale bank will consist of multiple routing numbers.

2. ACH Routing Number:

Automatic Clearing House (ACH) routing numbers are usually used for electronic transfers and are commonly used for small payments. These are unique to banks and their branches. Not every bank needs to have an ACH code, and if it does, it is standardized. It is nine digits long, with the first two digits usually ranging from 61 to 72.

So basically, ABA is used for paper check transfer, hence also known as “check routing number,” and ACH routine for electronic transfers, also known as “electronic routing number.” Honestly, the majority of banks use only one routing number for both. But you will find several regional branches with a separate ACH routing number.

So, the ABA routing number includes ACH routing numbers, but it is not vice versa. Your bank may have a specific ACH routing number for electronic transfers.

How to find a Bank Routing Number?

With the Help of Bank’s Check:

So as we have already discussed how routing numbers, commonly referred to as ABA routing numbers, are used for check payment, you can easily find it on the bank’s check. The nine-digit number you find on the bottom-left corner of the check is the bank routing number. You will also find the number printed in an odd font because it is printed in electronic ink and known as magnetic ink character recognition (MICR) to allow financial institutions to easily process the check.

Without a Check:

If you do not have a checkbook, you can always check the bank’s online website to find the routing number or calling your bank’s local branch. There are online portals that can help you find Bank Routing Numbers. The routing number can vary by the bank as well as the branch. This means one bank can have different routing numbers; hence check if you have got the routing number of the bank branch right where you have opened the account.

You can also directly use the ABA’s website to search the routing number of a bank, and you can use the ABA search to find a bank using its routing number.

Growing Money on Trees has Become Easier with These Business Ideas

As entrepreneurship has never been so popular than before, more and more individuals are seeking out for lucrative business ideas. While we strongly suggest that you start a business in the field you are passionate about, you still have to analyze how viable your business idea is. If you love to work in the nature, here are a few fantastic business ideas listed which are centered around trees.

1. Open Nurseries:

When you talk about plants, this is the first idea that may strike you. Owing a tree nursery can be a blessing for a plant lover, you need to have enough knowledge about the subject though as growing healthy trees and plants is also an art that needs learning and practice. You can always hire experts to do the field work and you managing the entire business, but if your heart is set upon it, then there is no looking back. The key to succeeding here is to look for valuable trees to get a good return on investments (ROIs)

2. Become a Tree Removal Expert:

This may sound new to you but there is a good market out there for tree removal experts. the services you can offer can be to remove damaged trees, trees from a construction site, trees that can be dangerous as they grow near power lines, etc. This is also a viable business, as both homeowners and commercial owners can be your potential customers. You can easily give this business a try by applying for a Forestry Machinery Lease to get a hold on the machinery that you would need to get the job done.

3. Grow Trees for Timber:

This is another viable business idea you can explore, which can also be easily turned to become profitable. Timber trees grow faster and carpenters use this wood all around the world. There are different types and qualities of timbers hence do some research to find the type which could give you more business. You can also find customers before you start growing, so you know which type of timber will lock the business deal. You have to invest in finding a fertile land where you can grow the trees. Check the soil condition, consider land cost and transportation cost before you decide upon finalizing this idea as your business.

4. Growing Trees for Wood Fuel:

Growing trees to be used as a fuel is also one business idea you can peak into. Not all wood can be a good wood fuel hence you need to do prior research. You have to find the tree whose wood gives the highest combustion efficiency and produces the lowest smoke. You can also produce more specific purpose wood, which is used to smoke meat, which means it needs to be aromatic. Know your market and then decide upon plantation. Yet again, you have to also factor in the land cost and transportation cost as well.

There are many more ideas you can explore that are centered around trees. You can pick any one of the idea but success will follow you only after you plan a clear business strategy and work step by step towards setting up your tree based business. 

4 Things to Consider Before Applying For a Machinery Loan

One of the most important aspects of a manufacturing or production business is its machinery or equipment. Perfect operation of machinery is crucial for maximizing its production capacity. Then again, you will have to think of buying more machinery or equipment with every increase in demand.

Purchasing and upgrading of machinery and equipment is a continuous process for manufacturing businesses. You will have to find the necessary finance to fulfil this requirement. In this context it is better to understand the various factors a lender would consider before offering you a machinery or equipment loan. Here are a few you could consider:

Duration of Business

How long you have been in manufacturing or production business matters a lot when it comes to getting a machinery loan approved. Banks and other traditional lenders usually look for at least 3 years’ business track to approve machinery loans.

Credit History

Your credit history is another thing that matters to your lenders while accepting loan applications. This will tell them how eligible you are to pay back the loan that they lend you. Make it a point to check your credit report and correct any discrepancies before applying for a machinery loan. You can also take the necessary steps to improve your credit score.

Company Profile

Any lender would want to know details about your company such as your vision, your main clients, and your products line before approving a loan. In addition some information about professional experience and educational background of the promotors might be helpful.

Cash flow

In addition to the above, a lender might need details about your monthly income and expenditure to assess your capacity of paying back the loan. Make sure you maintain proper cash flow statements that will give them all the details they are looking for.

While the above are the factors that lenders might consider to approve machinery loan, here are a few things you may want to consider before applying for one:

  • Understand your business requirements
  • Determine the space requirements for new machinery or equipment
  • Decide whether you can settle for second-hand or used machinery

Make sure you select a finance partner whom you can trust. Buckingham leasing is a good option. See here for more information on your future finance partner. A few things you need to look for, while selecting a trusted finance partner, are best interest rates and flexible repayment options. Go with a partner who can make the entire process of disbursal, speedy and hassle-free.

5 Incredible Tips to Maintain a Healthy Cash Flow

In today’s world if there is one thing that is going to determine the health of your business it is your cash flow. Of course there are many financing sources such as Buckingham Leasing. Nevertheless, unless you follow good cash management practices you cannot expect your business to survive and prosper.

Here are a few cash flow management strategies that can help:

Keep your Supplier Payments for the End

Choose suppliers that can offer you an interest-free line of credit so that you get more time to utilize your working capital. Negotiate for good payment terms and early payment discounts so that you can manage your cash flow requirements. You can find many who may be willing to offer such incentives in order to establish good customer relationships and speed up their receivables.

Offer Early Payment Discounts to Your Customers

Have a system to clear your account receivables and try and offer a small discount to those of your customers who clear their bills earlier than the specified date. Even if this does cost you a bit, it can have some positive impacts on your cash flow by lighting a fire under the slow-paying customers.

Revise Your Billing Schedule and Payment Terms

Make it a point to send your invoice along with your shipments. This way you can ensure a shorter cash-flow-conversion period. Also make sure your invoice mentions the due date of the payment along with the payment terms. Provide options for online fund transfers to increase convenience. In case you are providing a service, ask your customers to pay a deposit or advance before you begin work.

Monitor your Accounts and Manage your Collections

Having an efficient accounting department can help you track your payments regularly so that you aren’t left with any overdue accounts. Make it a point to follow up with your customers in case they don’t clear their bills before the specified due date. It might be a good idea to enforce late-payment-penalties. If necessary you can use a collection agency.

Take Proper Precautions before Extending Credit

Extending credit to your customers might be a good way of doing business; but if you don’t take the necessary precautions you may end up with bad cash flow issues. Have your customers fill out credit applications before extending them credit. Make it a point to verify their credit references. Have them sign written agreements to avoid misunderstandings.

Increasing your income sources and cutting down on your expenses is the best way to maintain a healthy cash flow. In addition, the above strategies should help in maximizing returns and maintaining healthy business relationships with your customers as well as suppliers.


Four Often Overlooked Aspects of Office Design

You are spending upwards of eight hours a day at the office. Providing a work space that is welcoming and encourages productivity will allow you to have a more focused staff as well as a nice place to spend the majority of your day. Here we shares some aspects of smart offices design that are often overlooked and that can contribute to a less than pleasant work environment:

  1. Sound: Many businesses have areas that can be loud which in turn can prove to be distracting for employees. Some examples include:
  • Photocopying rooms or stations
  • Mail rooms
  • Presentation rooms
  • Reception areas
  • Street front offices
  • Staff lounges
  • Other forms of industry specific equipment
  • Warehouses

When designing your office consider any areas that might be a source of noise and look into soundproofing walls and doors to add more privacy and separation. This will help keep noise to a dull roar and allow those whose offices are in close proximity to them work in peace.

  1. Lighting: Take careful consideration on how you use windows. Some offices have zero natural light where others tend to focus on window offices for prominent staff. Instead of hoarding natural light look for ways to share it. This will cut down on staff headaches and make the working environment more pleasant. If possible look into additions such as skylights as well as using glass partition walls for window offices so more light can travel into the inner office space.
  2. Traffic: Not the cars motoring by outside. Instead this is traffic throughout the office. Consider how people will travel throughout the office and be certain you are providing enough space for people to pass without difficulty. Clear paths will avoid accidents as well as keep things safe in case of an emergency to evacuate the building. You also want to consider how people work with each other and make it easy for them to get around. For example you would obviously not put accounts receivable at one side of the building and accounts payable on the other. Likewise consider who interacts the most and layout work stations so people can deal with each other naturally.
  3. Flooring: This might sound like an odd consideration, but it is an important one often overlooked. For example, a hardwood floor throughout the office can be quite distracting when people are walking about in heels. The constant clicking of heels throughout the office can be quite annoying. At the same time carpeted work stations can make operating chairs with wheels a challenge. A reception area might look smashing with marble floors but if people are coming in directly off the street can also pose a slipping hazard in inclement weather. Look at each area and consider what flooring will make sense to keep things quiet, while allowing for easy operation of chairs or even trolleys for mail and other interoffice deliveries.

Although these details might not seem important they will all contribute to a far more pleasant office with less distractions and more productivity.

7 Great Ways To Cultivate A Work Environment That Embodies Positivity

It is proven that a positive workplace encourages staff productivity and retention. Here are some tips from trainer and keynote speaker on workplace wellbeing Lee Chambers to how keep your workplace full of positivity.


  • Demonstrate gratitude.

Always looking for positive attributes in others is one way to bring out your own positive qualities. Gratitude can help you to see things in a different light. It helps you keep things in perspective and can build trust, respect, and mutual appreciation between people. So, start doing those random acts of kindness today.

  • Keep all messaging positive.

Words are powerful — never forget that. So, be sure to keep all your messaging positive. Communicate through a lens of optimism. You’ll soon see a big difference in the way recipients respond to your messages. Make your words, encouraging, passionate, authentic, and empowering for the biggest impact.

  • Be Thankful.

Start being thankful for things. Everyone craves recognition and to be appreciated for their contributions. Simply saying “Thank you” to a co-worker can go a long way. Try to make being thankful a daily habit — yet, be sure to always be genuine. No-ones appreciates false platitudes.  A quick thank you email is often all people need to stay positive.

  • Get excited about the small wins.

While it’s easy to get excited about reaching a major milestone, it’s important to remember to celebrate the small victories on route. Every time a goal is reached, someone took action, and it’s time to start recognizing that action. Overlooking little wins and robbing employees of well-deserved recognition for “behind-the-scenes” achievements isn’t going to contribute anything towards creating a positive work environment.

  • Smile.

Smiles are infectious, so keeping smiling even if you don’t feel particularly happy. Smile especially when you’re in a bad place. It’s a way to trick your mind into deciding to be happy. A smile with authentic roots is even more contagious. Even if company projections look like the end of the world, it’s important to maintain hope for the future. Everything can be turned around — smile because you know that.

  • Cultivate valuable relationships.

Building relationships is important. Fostering meaningful work relationships is crucial if you want to establish positivity in the workplace. Look for creative ways to relate to your colleagues. Out-of-hours social events can be an effective way to cultivate healthy relationships between co-workers, bosses, interns, and supervisors. Take steps to avoid succumbing to tunnel vision. To create the best work environment, you need to maintain valuable relationships with people at all authority levels.

  • Remain cognizant of your mission.

Your firm’s team mission is a big deal. Knowing the “why” behind what you’re trying to promote will make it easier to stay on task during the worst workdays. If everyone is walking in the shadows and is desperate for a stroke of authentic optimism or hope, take time to remind your team (and yourself) about the “why” behind maintaining a positive approach to the goings-on.

The importance of positivity in the workplace should never be underestimated. It is powerful as it can increase resilience and boost the coping abilities of employees. There will, of course, be days when it seems almost unfathomable to be able to promote positivity, but you need to start embodying the messages you are trying to promote. Commit to seeing the good in even the most difficult of situations — that is the whole point of positivity. Remember, if your own mindset is not strong, it will be hard to recruit others.

CertificationPoint: Successfully Connecting College/Trade School Students w/Business Service Buyers

Educational technology is one a few key buzzwords of today.  As we continue to progress into what is being referred to as the ‘new normal’, we are seeing not only K-12 education affected but also college and university students.  One of the key players in assisting students to hit the ground running with respect to their future career is CertificationPoint, founded by Byron Giles.  Mr. Giles founded CertificationPoint in 2012 and applied for and received a copyright in 2014.

At the core of the reasoning for the tradition of going to college is to mature and expand education in hopes of being a better career fit for future employers.  An area where there has seemingly been a shortfall is the ability or opportunity for gainful employment after college.  A fair amount of blame is normally thrown in various directions to include the college due to the expenses which attending college entails.  Our nation’s colleges are not the point of failure and have done a reasonable job in getting students prepared.  There are times when a portion of the due diligence falls on the society to assist in the preparation of students as they enter the job-market.  Quite a few educational technology resources have stepped up to the plate as witnessed by awards such as Edtech Digest.

Byron Giles, at CertificationPoint, has focused in on assisting student with gaining a level of experience within their future career based on the number of collaborative projects complete.  The platform is similar to the professional freelance platform UpWork, but with CertificationPoint students actually bid on projects based on their experience level.  On the other side of the coin service buyers and businesses can add a mentor to the project for peace on mind that the project will stay on course.  It is an interesting concept which has been gaining considerable attention.

Building work experience while in college can be difficult.  Many traditional students carrying a full course load and many non-traditional students working fulltime with a family.  It’s awesome to see education technology platforms coming to the forefront which allow for not only experience within a chosen degree plan and career field, but also enabling student to close the knowledge gaps which book knowledge without the help of hands-on experience can create.  The closure of some of the knowledge gaps can mean the difference between getting the job as well as hitting the ground and impressing a future employer.

6 Tips to Run a Successful Convenience Store

If your convenience store is not doing as well as you imagined it to do, then following the below tips will help you succeed in running a successful store.

Stock the Aisle Smartly:

Where you organize what product matters because you do not want the customers to get frustrated searching for things in your store hence do not change the layouts often as your repeated customers may find it annoying. Stock essential daily use items in the end as people tend to walk through the aisle to reach those and realize that they need more items which will only increase your sale but keep quickly needed items such as chocolates and magazines in the front of the store for customers convenience.

Avoid Being Out-of-Stock:

Make sure to plan your inventory carefully so that the customers do not return empty-handed. Keep a note of things that needs to be re-stocked every day, so you never run out of items to sell. Also, keep a note of things that do not sell so you do not order extra items unnecessarily.

Focus on Product Quality:

With a convenience store, you need to build people’s trust in the locality hence focus on providing good quality products and always throw away expired products so that the customers do not pick up spoilt items.

Consider the Community:

As your store is in a particular locality hence your store should focus on the requirements of that community rather than stocking generic products. It will take you some time to understand the customer demands but once you have an idea, plan your inventory based on what sells best in your locality and order less of items that are rarely sold.

Decorate Your Store Well:

Human beings are sensory oriented people; hence it is essential to maintain good store aesthetics in order to attract more customers to it. Keep the store clean and plan the shop signboards such that it is very clear and also looks appealing. Do not make your store congested, instead leave a lot of free space in the aisle so that the store looks big and organized.

Provide Quick Check-Out:

Your customers are visiting a convenience store and not a supermarket because they do not wish to wait in long queues, hence make the check-out process as quick as possible. Hire an extra staff for a quick checkout counter to handle customers who need to bill less than five products. The latest addition which can really increase your business and make your store the talk of the town is adding a custom vending machine based on your business requirement so that your customers can directly use the vending machine to buy the product instead of entering the store and searching for it.

The Bottom Line- Make it Truly Convenient:

Remember that the main purpose of the store is to make things convenient for the customers, hence focus on making their lives easy by organizing things for easy access, fast service and ease to return damaged products. Once you take care of these basic expectations, your store will become the busiest in your neighborhood

What is the Working Mode of the Shrink Packaging Machine

With the continuous improvement of people’s living standards, the demand for various foods, medicines and materials has also greatly increased, which has further promoted the rapid development of my country’s food packaging industry. As one of the indispensable machinery in the field of medical and food production, packaging machine is a rapidly developing and promising mechanical system. Shrink packaging machine is the most common automatic packaging machine in the production field, so what is its working mode? Just get to know the editor!

After the shrink packaging machine starts to operate, the feeding motor drives the conveyor belt to run naturally and the materials are continuously transported to the automatic packaging machine. A photoelectric switch monitors the material entering the equipment and then sends the signal to the programmable controller. The programmable controller sends a signal according to the pre-programmed control program to change the stacking solenoid valve that controls the stacking cylinder, and the internal equipment of the stacking cylinder generates corresponding actions .

After the stacking is in place, the stacking magnetic switch detects the relevant signal and sends the relevant signal to the PLC, and controls the output position of the stacking solenoid valve through the program established in the PLC. After the work is completed, the stacking solenoid valve coil is closed and reset in time.

Generally speaking, the bottom layer conditions are controlled by the external counter itself, which is not affected by the program for judgment and manual operation according to different packaging varieties. When the stack condition is met, the plc will get an indication signal to prompt the plc to edit and issue instructions for the next step.

The timing device is an external relay device, mainly used to control the time of the melt sealing knife. The so-called main timer signal is input to the PLC and controls its input time, so as to achieve the scientific design and reasonable goal. When PLC melting knife breakage occurs, the solenoid pressure valve stack outputs a constant command, which makes the melting knife decrease in time.

When the reset operation of the melt knife cylinder actuator, the key to the response is to guide the movement of the cylinder as a prerequisite for the main means of the back of the laminated body, and to push the reset group.

The packaging speed of shrink packaging machine The development trend of packaging machinery in the world is toward the direction of electromechanical integration, simple structure, high production speed, and low production cost. The packaging speed of shrink packaging machine reaches more than 80 packs per minute.

GOLD- An Investing ‘Safe Haven’

Homer called gold ‘the glory of the immortals”. For Incas, gold was the sweat of the sum. Egyptians believe that gold supports them after the life. For thousands of year, gold has tempted explorers, supported empires and has become a market barometer. Its value stems from its rarity. A direct link between gold and currency emerged in 550 BC, when the first gold coin was used in Libya. In the 19th century currency around the world was fixed to gold. This lasted till 1971 when President Nixon announced that the US would no longer exchange dollars for gold at a set price.

For investors, gold still glitters in times of crisis. Its value peaked $1900 an ounce in 2011 and demand often spikes at times of market stress as investors look for a safe haven. Despite the allure, gold is not immune to economic reality.

The thing about gold is that, it has a long term store value. Macroeconomic analysts often identify gold as ‘Purchasing Power Parity’. Gold is a way of anchoring into valley on an international basis. Therefore, it is a safe haven for people who are particularly suffering from currency crisis. Gold is traditionally used as a safe haven destination in times of uncertainty.

The price of gold is normally calculated in dollars and moves in the opposite direction to the greenback. This is due to if the US currency gains in value, then it takes lesser dollar to purchase an ounce of gold. The price of gold wrecked in March as the dollar bestirred. Due to this, the spot gold price (the cost at which the precious metal can be instantly traded) fell below $1500 per ounce for the first time in 2020.


People can invest in physical gold in the form of coins, bars or jewellery. To store it safely, and to find a market to trade it through, is costly.

Another way of investing gold is buying shares of gold mining companies. This can be acted as a leveraged play on gold if its price goes up. If the profits of the mining company go up this would potentially boost returns.

One of the most trusted ways to invest in gold is Exchange Traded Commodities (ETCs). They are an investment vehicle traded in shares on an exchange, which tracks the elemental pricing index of that commodity.

In the meantime, funds can associated these different types of exposure to gold and therefore, making it perhaps the best way to an assorted solution.

Gold tends to recover within the days and weeks afterward and in general goes to new horizons, exclusively if equities remain depressed. If we go through the recessions, globally we will witness selling of gold in order to meet additional margin calls.

Investors generally buy or invest in gold for diversity from standard assets inclusive of stocks, bonds, real estate and private equity. Investors are also attracted towards gold because it is liquid, easy to buy and sell.

The fact that gold is an anonymous, portable currency, that holds its value over time and acceptable virtually everywhere makes it stand out from the crowd. Fxtriangle can help you build substantial wealth by investing in forex managed accounts through reputable brokers. Managed account trading service is for such investors who are novice and has limited or no idea about the forex market.