Jim Aramanda, President & CEO, The Clearing House 

Ensuring that the RTP network serves U.S. depository institutions of all sizes and their customers has been The Clearing House’s priority since we first began work to develop the country’s new, modern payments rail over five years ago.

The First New Core Payments System in Over 40 Years: Built for U.S. Depository Institutions of All Sizes

The RTP network is the first new core payments infrastructure to be built in over four decades and the first ever designed and built for the digital age. Launched in November 2017, the system is now delivering to U.S. businesses and consumers the real-time functionality, rich messaging, and security consistent with the way Americans operate today – in real-time.  To ensure that the RTP network works for depository institutions of all sizes, TCH has collaborated with industry stakeholders, service providers, consumer groups, the Federal Reserve-sponsored Faster Payments Task Force, among others, in designing, and developing the system. Today, we are working together to ensure that the network is universally available to all depository institutions nationwide and that enabling the RTP network is as easy and efficient as possible. 

Access to all U.S. Accounts Will Enable the Full Benefits of Real-time Payments in the U.S.

Achieving ubiquity for the RTP network, meaning that the network reaches every federally insured depository institution in the U.S. -- and by extension every U.S. account -- is a principle that is paramount to TCH.

Multiple Ways for Depository Institutions to Connect

To enable universal connectivity, we are working to provide multiple channels for depository institutions to connect to the RTP network, including via direct connection, through Third-Party Service Providers as well as other channels such as bankers’ banks and corporate credit unions. We expect Third-Party Service Providers to begin enabling their first set of cores over the next several months, providing for a wave of smaller banks and credit unions to come onto the RTP network.

Benefits to Depository Institutions and their Customers

We are excited about the benefits the RTP network offers to depository institutions and their customers:

• 24/7 clearing and settling
• Immediate availability of payments
• Payment certainty
• Rich, flexible messaging functionality to support value-added products and services
• Credit Push payment allows customers to initiate payments from their existing account(s)
• Enables cash flow control and back office efficiencies
• Flexible architecture to meet changing market needs
• Multiple redundancies to enable uninterrupted operation  

Our Commitment to Financial Institutions of All Sizes

The RTP network has a single price for all network participants, regardless of size, with no volume discounts, volume commitments or monthly minimums. This approach to pricing was designed to ensure fair and easy access to the RTP network by depository institutions of all sizes.

Click here for the RTP network’s pricing/fee schedule.

To ensure a consistent voice from network participants of all sizes, TCH recently expanded the RTP network’s governance to include non-member financial institutions by adding several seats to the RTP Business Committee, the group that governs the strategy, operation, and rules for the network.

Join the Real-Time Payments Revolution!

The RTP network now reaches over 50% of U.S. demand deposit accounts and we are seeing volumes on the system increase exponentially. Even more importantly, we are seeing demand for real-time capabilities expanding at a rapid pace with businesses and consumers quickly coming to appreciate the benefits provided by real-time payments. To discuss what the real-time payments revolution means for your bank or credit union, contact us by phone or e-mail below.

Phone: 212.613.9872

E-mail: RTPInfo@theclearinghouse.org