Real-Time Collections

Real-Time Collections is an exciting new service brought about by the Faster Payments Initiative of the US Federal Reserve providing payments that are instant, final (irrevocable - "good funds") and secure. Definition: Real-Time instant payments are defined as electronic retail payment solutions available 24/7/365 and resulting in the immediate or... close-to-immediate interbank clearing of the transaction and simultaneous debiting of the payers account and crediting of the payees account (within seconds of payment initiation) in a synchronous transaction, irrespective of the underlying payments instrument used (credit transfer, direct debit) and of the underlying clearing and settlement arrangements that make this possible. In addition to payment assurance and lower fees for transactions, many small businesses and large retailers alike are looking at instant payments to enhance their cash flow management, reduce fraud activity and provide incremental value to their customers. Definition provided by ACI Worldwide Not all Instant payments are Good Funds. Although having the feature of real-time settlement, in part, because of Debit capabilities and the inclusion of Credit Card processing, are not Final and Irrevocable. In a business-to-business context, especially Real-Time Collections, RTP offered by The Clearing House is a credit push system. Payments are pushed from the bank account of the business making the payment to the bank account of the company receiving it. In between, RTP supports the financial institutions customer-facing systems for services like bill payment, cash management, peer-to-peer (P2P) payments, and emergency disbursements. Messages such as requests for payment, payment confirmations, requests for additional information, and remittance detail are used to create frictionless customer-facing interactions. TCH's system is the only privately owned instant payment "Rail" that can reach all U.S. bank and credit union accounts and enable funds to be sent and received within seconds. All TCH ...Read More