More than one million hits have been made on Butterfield Bank?s Internet banking system since it was launched in 2001, the company said yesterday.

In a Press statement, the bank said from the time the online system ? Butterfield Direct ? was launched through the end of 2004, more than one million transactions made.

Girvan Campbell, an assistant vice-president in the bank?s electronic banking division and someone who has been involved with the Butterfield online banking platform since its inception, said: ?Internet banking is no longer ?the wave of the future? but the way most banking is now being undertaken around the world.?

He continued: ?Hitting the one million mark is a testament to the popularity of Butterfield Direct, its broad functionality and to the changing behaviour of banking customers. People are still ?discovering? the ease and convenience of electronic banking.This is supported by our transaction numbers exceeding 42,000 per month.?

Butterfield Direct allows customers who have registered to use the service to undertake a wide range of transactions, including paying bills, paying third parties at Butterfield Bank or Bank of Bermuda, account transfers, cheque book orders and setting up recurring or future-dated payments.

Mr. Campbell said the bank has also put in place more stringent security to protect those banking online: ?The virtual keyboard allows for greater security against keyloggers (cyber criminals).

?We want our customers to have confidence that reasonable safeguards are in place for their electronic transactions,? he said.