Industry Leaders Convene To Advance the Strategic Adoption Of Real-Time Payments

At the Smarter Faster Payments conference in New Orleans, industry experts discussed the growing momentum behind real-time payments. They highlighted the transformative potential of these payments across various sectors.

However, despite the rise of digital payment methods, speakers acknowledged the continued importance of traditional payment systems. These include wire transfers, ACH, and cheques, each of which faces its own challenges in modernisation.

Industry Aims To Streamline Real-Time Payments Across Financial Institutions

In one session, the business case and ROI for connecting to instant payments rails was discussed, where speakers heralded the strategic importance of real-time payments.

Commercial use cases such as payroll and disbursements remain, as well as support with API connectivity. Bridget Hall, leader of real-time payments, Americas, ACI Worldwide, explored these use cases and introducing tax returns as an interesting part of the real-time payments conversation.

Hall explained that it’s not necessarily about paying taxes faster, but ensuring payments are made on time. Melissa Ashley, president and Chief Executive Officer of Corporate One Federal Credit Union, added that providers have made significant progress. She noted that for a credit union to complete transactions on the same day is a step forward.

Ashley emphasized that it’s different from other implementations because it’s being done for the first time. She highlighted that the focus is on ensuring all teams—operations, accounting, IT, and compliance—know what to do.

Jim Colassano, SVP, product development, The Clearing House, explored how the focus is now on ensuring banks can send and receive instant payments because of the advanced user experience that real-time provides.

Experts Highlight Push For Real-Time Payments In Legacy Systems

Colassano explained that when he sends money to his brokerage account and sees a pop-up in his account within two seconds, he doesn’t need an explanation of what’s happening in the background.

He said this is the type of experience he wants and encouraged banks to implement it, as customers will recognize the value. Colassano also mentioned that they are shifting their message to encourage banks to be more active as senders, as well as receivers.

Ranta, senior manager of payment technology transformation at Ernst & Young, stated that readiness is the most important factor that stands out. He clarified that this is no longer a multi-year project, as seen with traditional implementations like FedWire or ACH.

He said the timeline went from 18–36 months to just a few weeks or months. Ranta said it’s now much faster to decide, get ready, and start than it was a few years ago.

However, a panel held just a couple of hours later, discussed the resilience and relevance of core payment rails, including wire transfers, ACH, and cheques, despite the rise of new technologies and entrants. Further, wire rails are needed to modernise and improve transparency, while ACH’s adaptability remains and the potential for faster payments is apparent.