As difficult as it may be to realize that summer is nearly over, it is also difficult to imagine that it has been a year since phase one of the three-phased rollout of same day ACH. Financial institutions are geared up for phase two which takes effect September 15th. As this post in Nav.com explains to small businesses, the second phase requires financial institutions to accept not just credits, but also debits:
Beginning Sept. 15, many businesses will have the option of receiving almost all ACH debit and credit payments faster, thanks to the rollout of phase two of the Same-Day ACH Rule by NACHA, the Electronic Payments Association.Same-day ACH means that payments initiated today will be received and credited today. Phase two of the Rule specifies that ACH debit payments, or payments in which a seller initiates a transaction by “pulling” funds from a buyer’s bank account, can be transmitted on the same day the transaction is initiated. Examples of an ACH debit payment could include daily or monthly payments made on a business loan, insurance premiums and other bills.
I will take a deep-dive look into same day ACH in a report later in September. One topic I will cover is the fees that banks are charging for same-day transactions. Large corporations will negotiate what they pay for same-day services. Smaller businesses will typically pay fixed, non-negotiable fees. The article commented on how much these fees for small businesses can vary:
If your bank does originate same-day ACH payments, you’ll want to first check what the added fee is for originating same day. Zion’s Bank, for example, charges an added $1 fee on top of the fee for a classic ACH transfer. Silicon Valley Bank charges a $5 fee.
Overview by Sarah Grotta, Director, Debit Advisory Service at Mercator Advisory Group
Read the full story here
