Bill Morrison
Lisa Gawlak
The Clearing House’s RTP (Real-Time Payments) network will propel faster payments and bring in the next generation of billing technology. As a provider of integrated electronic billing and payment solutions, Transactis continues to develop its offerings to better serve the market. Transactis is using the RTP network to enhance its products, focused on making the payment experience better for consumers, the businesses they use, and the financial institutions that support them.
There are two prominent models people use to pay their bills: biller direct (73%), where a payer goes to a business’ website to make a payment, and bank bill pay (27%), where a person pays bills through online banking sites. Those using the biller direct (BD) model have access to all of the information and data associated with their bill, including amount due, due date, and posting date. All of this information is useful in driving good payment behavior and habits because it offers people more financial understanding and control. On the other hand, BD models do not typically link to the payer’s bank account for validation or identify available funds, which can result in payments being returned for insufficient funds, bank fees, and delayed payment posting. Additionally, the bill payment experience is fragmented because payers must visit the sites of all of their vendors separately to view bills.
People who use bank bill pay (BBP) can easily make payments directly from their bank accounts, which reduces friction and the risk of insufficient funds. They are also able to view bills for multiple vendors in one place. However, BBP only includes bills of participating businesses, so the experience is still fragmented for customers. BBP also usually lacks notification features such as new bill messages or due date reminders. A final drawback is that users don’t know when a payment will post, which sets the stage for potential overdrafts.
The RTP network launched by The Clearing House has set the stage for solutions providers like Transactis to bridge the gap between these models and add value for consumers regardless of how they pay their bills. As the leading provider of electronic billing and payment solutions that are delivered through the top financial institutions in the U.S., Transactis is in a unique position to develop technology using real-time rails that will improve the billing and payment experience for both BD and BBP services.
Transactis transforms traditional billing and payment processing with innovative, reliable, and secure integrated electronic solutions. Its advanced technology simplifies receivables management and is delivered to market through banks and service providers that support millions of businesses. Transactis was created to provide banks with biller-direct electronic bill presentment and payment technology to serve their commercial clients. Today, Transactis powers the BD offerings for 12 of the top 25 banks in the U.S. The RTP network will let Transactis better serve its banking clients, which in turn will benefit businesses and their customers.
The integration of the RTP network into BillerIQ, Transactis’ electronic billing and payment solution, will be multifaceted in order to provide value to businesses, consumers, and financial institutions, no matter which model (BD or BBP) is used. For payments made via a BillerIQ site, consumers will be able to view a bill on the system and make a payment in real time. This is especially useful for someone at risk for a late payment. The real-time payment system will help Transactis process that payment immediately and provide acknowledgment of the payment, preventing the consumer from having a service discontinued or incurring a late fee.
Transactis will also use the RTP network to connect to BBP sites, delivering complete bill information directly to the bank, increasing not only the number of bills a consumer can view on BBP but also the level of detail. This makes the bill-paying experience seamless and complete because consumers will be to see what they owe and when they owe it, and get notifications to remind them to pay. The biller can reach customers where they are and provide them with the information they need to pay their bills accurately and in a timely fashion.
Of course, the RTP network is not only valuable to bill payers; it also has great value for businesses and financial institutions. Businesses are concerned with getting paid for their products and services in a timely manner. Businesses that use BillerIQ will be able to use Transactis’ products to deliver bills in ways their customers want (BD and BBP) and to receive payments quickly, with funds transferred immediately that are verified and will not be reversed or bounce because of insufficient funds.
Finally, financial institutions will also see an immense amount of value from the way Transactis will utilize the RTP network to enhance its offerings. Transacts has already signed on to develop Mastercard’s Bill Pay Exchange, which will utilize the RTP network to reinvent bank bill pay. This will make the relationship of consumers to their banks “stickier” because we know that the more services people use, the more likely they are to continue to build their relationship. By offering Transactis’ electronic billing and payment solutions, and using Transactis for bill content in their BBP sites, financial institutions will have more connection to the way bills are paid. The more bills that consumers receive and pay, the harder it is for them to leave the bank, knowing they will have to re-establish all their accounts and lose access to the bills they currently receive.
As the RTP network spreads and as more solutions utilize the system, we will see a network effect of interoperability that offers more choice and power to consumers, while helping businesses and financial institutions serve them better. Transactis is ready to play a big role, capitalizing on the opportunities that the RTP network brings, to spread the accessibility of bill content and data, as well as providing a seamless payment experience, regardless of the model used. The benefits of the RTP network are wide-ranging, and the system will prime the financial world to become more connected and inclusive.
