US banks launch real-time payments system

The first payments system to be built in the US since the birth of the internet, RTP enables consumers and businesses to send and receive domestic payments in seconds, rather than days.

BNY Mellon and US Bank carried out the first payment on the system, with several of TCH's 25 owners, including Citi, JP Morgan and SunTrust set to follow suit as early adopters. Open to all US depository institutions, the system is expected to be used by banks holding more than half of all deposits by the end of 2018 and to be "ubiquitous" by 2020.

The system helps the US catch up with other developed countries, such as the UK, which has had its Faster Payments scheme in place for nearly a decade.

That platform was developed by Mastercard-owned Vocalink, which has helped build the THC system, ensuring that it not only supports fund transfers but the ability to both request payments and provide critical information.

This, says TCH, means RTP will support more seamless and efficient e-invoicing, bill pay, insurance claim payments, cash on delivery payments and more. The platform also provides transparency and certainty with immediate confirmation notices that payments have been sent and received and instantaneously settled.

Jim Aramanda, CEO, TCH, says: "RTP has the potential to revolutionize the way payments are made in the U.S. Our RTP system was designed from the ground up to be fast, safe, and a platform for innovation that enables banks and credit unions to build products that are more responsive to their customers’ needs."