Federal Reserve Eyes FedNow, Blockchain

The Federal Reserve continues to make headway in driving payment rail innovation via the upcoming FedNow Service, as well as increasing interest in blockchain and digital assets.

Plus, you can find enhancements to Same Day ACH, a new RTP solution for corporates and more in this week’s Payment Rails Innovation Tracker.

FedNow Readies For ISO 2022 Standards

As the Federal Reserve continues pilot testing of its new FedNow Service, it’s also readying the real-time payment infrastructure in other ways. Most recently, the Fed announced the availability of the FedNow ISO 20022 messaging standards, specifications that dictate how payments messages are formatted for greater interoperability. In a statement, Nick Stanescu, senior vice president and FedNow business executive, said support for ISO 20022 is “unanimous” among payments industry stakeholders. “Our adherence to the ISO 20022 standard means more opportunities for implementation across products and market segments,” he said.

The Boston Fed Looks Toward Blockchain

While the Federal Reserve continues development of its FedNow Service, the entity is also exploring the opportunity to build blockchain-based payment rails to move digital currency. Speaking with PYMNTS, Jim Cunha, senior vice president of secure payments and FinTech at the Fed’s Boston branch, said it is yet to be determined whether the Fed will eventually issue a digital currency. But he emphasized the importance of future-proofing payments infrastructure. “As we move forward, we’re building something that’s going to last 100 years,” Cunha said.

Nacha Raises Same Day ACH Transaction Limit

One of the biggest barriers to adoption of faster payment networks for B2B payments is their relatively low limit on the value of funds that can be moved. Nacha may open up the ability for corporates to use Same Day ACH after raising that limit to $1 million. Nacha noted that this heightened limit broadens potential use cases for Same Day ACH, pointing to payroll as one example of a business transaction type that may benefit. The elevated limit follows Nacha’s expanded hours in which Same Day ACH payments can be initiated.

Dwolla Loops Into RTP

With barriers to adoption lowering for corporates interested in faster and real-time payments, Dwolla is looking to connect more businesses to real-time payment capabilities. The company announced that its payment platform can now support B2B transactions on the RTP network, providing more payment rail choice for businesses that need to send payments. “The immediacy of real-time payments will fundamentally change how businesses operate,” said Dwolla CEO Brady Harris. “As electronic payments continue to grow in adoption, RTP is the perfect complement to our ACH and push-to-debit offerings.”

Citi Boosts Corporate Transaction Monitoring With SWIFT gpi

Citi Treasury and Trade Solutions announced the launch of Citi Service Insights, a dashboard through which corporate and treasury customers can open and manage payment inquiries. The solution is integrated with SWIFT gpi Case Resolution, a feature that connects businesses that make payments via gpi to open and handle queries related to the interbank handling of funds. Citi noted the solution automates data entry to accelerate the resolution of queries or disputes, building upon gpi’s ability to provide greater transparency into the movement of corporate funds across borders.