© 2024 Arizent. All rights reserved.
p1apdirbcq1rsfh421ari1p6h2v7c.jpg
The U.S. is steadily building the foundation of a nationwide faster payments system, but not all of the pieces are connected. Many of the elements developed independently, with influence from across the globe.
p1apdirbcp102vkn2uiopji98sa.jpg
Visa Inc. credit and debit cards are arranged for a photograph in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2014. Visa Inc. is expected to release earnings data on Jan. 30. Photographer: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg
Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg

Visa Direct

The Visa Direct payments platform is built on technology the card network has used overseas for 15 years. In the U.S., Visa began working towards faster payments with a 2011 mandate that issuers accept original credit transactions.
p1apdirbco1mqdjh1l32f9d4oc7.jpg
A Mastercard Inc. logo sits on a credit card in this arranged photograph in Moscow, Russia, on Tuesday, April 1, 2014. Visa Inc. and MasterCard Inc. stopped processing cards for Bank Rossiya after the U.S. placed the lender on its sanctions list. Photographer: Andrey Rudakov/Bloomberg
Andrey Rudakov/Bloomberg

Mastercard's Big Investment

In June, Mastercard made a $920 million investment in VocaLink, a U.K.-based company that powers faster payments initiatives in the U.K., Singapore and other regions.
p1apdirbcn137r10m9bia18674pb6.jpg
human and technology
whanwhanai/Getty Images/iStockphoto

The Clearing House

The Clearing House, an ACH network operator, is working with providers such as FIS and VocaLink to create a real-time payments system for the benefit of U.S. banks.
p1apdirbcptpt1ab8d5bn2i1hqeb.jpg
Steve Dalmado

NACHA

Nacha has pushed for years for faster ACH payments, but until recently its proposal was blocked by the biggest U.S. banks. Nacha eventually overcame this obstacle, and its Same Day ACH rule takes effect Sept. 23, 2016, with the Fed setting its own plan to coincide with that deadline (Pictured: Nacha President and CEO Jan Estep).
p1apdirbcpkauk71fts1ictr008.jpg
Ben Milne, chief executive officer of Dwolla Corp., speaks during an interview in New York, U.S., on Friday, June 15, 2012. The F.ounders, conference is known as the "Davos for geeks." Photographer: Scott Eells/Bloomberg *** Local Caption *** Ben Milne
Scott Eells/Bloomberg

Dwolla

Dwolla's pitch for faster payments: It's already built. Its FiSync protocol for faster payments has been in place since 2012 as an alternative for ACH (Pictured: Dwolla CEO Ben Milne).
p1apdj0qlvht4dnm1h9bh99q9rm.jpg

Fed Brings Focus

The Fed's Faster Payments Task Force, founded in 2013, is working to bring all parties together to create "a process to facilitate this dialogue of faster payments for the U.S. in a way that it would not compete with market developments," said Sean Rodriguez, SVP and faster payments strategy leader for the Federal Reserve System (pictured).
p1apdirbcp14hu24aamm1l89f1v9.jpg

ClearXchange

Early Warning's clearXchange was developed in 2011 by JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and Wells Fargo as a P-to-P network, but has since aspired to greater ambitions. ClearXchange's work in faster payments brings with it the support of the nation's largest banks.
Technology Mobile payments Compliance Disruptors Law and regulation
MORE FROM AMERICAN BANKER