After only three months in operation, $17 Billion in ACH transactions have been originated and received all in the same day. Some of those may have been executed same in error. The way that a sender designates a same day ACH transaction is simply by entering the current date in the date field of an ACH file. Some businesses use the current date as a matter of practice, perhaps unaware that the new capability in the ACH system will actually move the transactions within a single day, as long as the submission deadlines are met. Even if there are a some unintended same day transactions, the service is off to a good start:
“In its first three months of operation, Same Day ACH has proven that it is a valuable faster payment solution for a variety of users, including businesses, consumers, and financial institutions” said Janet O. Estep, president and chief executive officer of the association, known as NACHA. “We are encouraged by its performance thus far, and look forward to seeing Same Day ACH continue to provide value for its users in 2017.”
Direct deposit made up the greatest number of same-day ACH payments, 52 percent, with 6.8 million transactions, NACHA said. The transactions, which included emergency payroll and pension payments, totaled $5.9 billion.
Business-to-business payments made up 32 percent of same-day volume, with 4.1 million transactions totaling $8.8 billion.
Same day ACH will roll out a second phase of capabilities, namely same day debits, in third quarter of this year. Results from this next phase will provide a better understanding if a business case exists for same day transactions.
Overview by Sarah Grotta, Director, Debit Advisory Group at Mercator Advisory Group
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