Electronics services at the 25 biggest banks in L.A.

Most banking institutions doing business in the Los Angeles area offer a wide variety of online services, but some banks offer no online services at all. Here's a rundown of the services offered by the 25 banks with the most branches in L.A. County.

* Bank of America (300 Branches)

With BofA's free HomeBanking service, individuals and sole proprietors can view their account balances and transaction histories, transfer funds between accounts and download the information to accounting software.

An unlimited number of hills can be paid over the online service for $5.95 a month. That fee is waived for customers with direct-deposit Versatel checking accounts, or with Prima checking accounts or Master Relationship Accounts.

HomeBanking transactions can be conducted over the Internet at www.bankamerica.com or through America Online by using the keyword "HomeBanking."

The services can also be accessed directly by purchasing BofA's financial management software, Managing Your Money, for $9.95. Managing Your Money is only available to PC users. Macintosh users must connect via the Internet or AOL.

For commercial customers, BofA offers its "PC Banking for Business," which has the same services as HomeBanking, plus wire transfers and stop payments. PC Banking for Business is free for the first month and then costs $6.60 a month.

* Wells Fargo Bank (237)

Individuals or sole proprietorships can use Wells Fargo's free Online Banking service to view their account balances and checking and credit card activity, transfer money between accounts and download information to accounting programs. Customers can also use the service to pay domestic bills. For a flat $5 a month, customers can use the service to pay up to 25 domestic bills, after which it's 40 cents per bill. Those fees are waived for customers maintaining account balances of at least $5,000.

PC and Macintosh users alike can access the Online Banking service over the Internet through Netscape Navigator or Microsoft Explorer. If accessed through Quicken or Microsoft Money, the service costs $3 a month.

For business customers other than sole proprietors, Wells Fargo offers its "Business Gateway" service, which includes the same features as its Online Banking service except online bill payments.

It does, however, allow customers to access their lines of credit online. Wells Fargo charges a one-time fee of $14.95 and then $5 a month for its Business Gateway service.

The service cannot be accessed over the Internet. Wells Fargo supplies custom software, free of charge, to Business Gateway customers. It requires Windows 3.1 or higher for PC systems or SoftWindows for Macintosh Power PC systems.

* Washington Mutual Bank (Owner of Great Western Bank) (134)

Washington Mutual does not yet offer any online banking services. It intends to introduce them in early 1998.

* People's Bank of California (132)

This bank's "Electronic Banking for Business" allows companies to view the status and history of their transactions and balances, conduct wire transfers (for $20 per order), stop payments (for $10 per order), and track checks. People's Bank charges a $100 set-up fee, a $75 monthly fee for a single work station, plus $50 a month for each additional work station.

People's Bank online services are not available over the Internet, or to Macintosh users. The services are only available to PC users with Windows 95. The bank provides the necessary software free of charge.

* Home Savings of America (77)

With Home Savings' Online Banking service, customers can view their account balances and histories and transfer funds between accounts. The $2.95 monthly fee is waived for customers with direct deposit.

For an additional $5.95 a month, Online Banking customers can use the service to pay up to 20 bills. That bill-paying service is free for the first 60 days.

For businesses, Home Savings offers PC Express, which has the same functions as Online Banking plus stop payment on checks. The monthly $39 fee is waived if a minimum monthly average checking account balance of $10,800 is maintained.

Accessing the full range of online services requires Windows-based software, which Home Savings provides free of charge to PC and Macintosh users - for both retail and commercial accounts.

On the Internet, users can log on to www.homesavings.com and sign up for free access to account balances and to see which checks have cleared in their account.