Negotiable Order of Withdrawal account

In the United States, a negotiable order of withdrawal account (NOW account) is a deposit account that pays interest, on which an unlimited number of checks may be written.

While a negotiable order of withdrawal is essentially identical to a check drawn on a demand deposit account, US banking regulations define the terms "demand deposit account" and "negotiable order of withdrawal account" separately. And until July 2011, Regulation Q stated that a demand deposit could not pay interest. NOW accounts were structured to comply with Regulation Q.