California Financial Code


Section 1853

No person shall engage in the business of issuing travelers checks without having first obtained a license hereunder.

Section 1854

(a) No license to issue travelers checks shall be required of any bank that is organized under the laws of this state, any national bank that maintains its main office or a branch office in this state, any insured foreign (other state) state bank that maintains a branch office in this state, or any foreign (other nation) bank that is licensed under Article 3 (commencing with Section 1750) of Chapter 13.5 or that is authorized under federal law to maintain a federal agency (as defined in Section 1700) or federal branch (as defined in Section 1700) in this state.

(b) No license to issue travelers checks shall be required for the issuance of any foreign currency travelers check by a group of banks each of which is organized under the laws of a nation other than the United States and one or more of which are licensed under Article 3 (commencing with Section 1750) of Chapter 13.5 or are authorized under federal law to maintain a federal agency or federal branch in this state, provided that each bank that is a member of the group is jointly and severally liable to pay the foreign currency travelers check.

Section 1854.1

There is exempted from the provisions of Section 1853 the sale by a person licensed under Chapter 14 (commencing with Section 1800) or by any agent of such person, of any foreign currency travelers check that is issued by a bank which is organized under the laws of a nation other than the United States and which is neither licensed under Article 3 (commencing with Section 1750) of Chapter 13.5 nor authorized under federal law to maintain a federal agency or federal branch in this state, provided:

(a) That such person, at the time when it sells the foreign currency travelers check, either directly or indirectly through any of its agents, provides to the purchaser a written guaranty that, if such bank fails to pay the foreign currency travelers check on account of insolvency, such person will pay the foreign currency travelers check; and

(b) That the aggregate face amount of foreign currency travelers checks issued by such bank which are sold in this state in any calendar year by such person, directly or indirectly through its agents, shall not exceed the equivalent of one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000).