If you are not familiar with the concept of Automated Clearing House processing, this is the system used by most banks and other financial institutions for the transfer of credited or debited electronic funds. Technically speaking, it is the relationship that exists among banks throughout the US and enables them to facilitate the transfer of electronic funds from one business to another as well as from a consumer to a business or vice versa.
In addition to being highly reliable, the system is extremely secure and is much more cost-effective, quicker, and secure than processing personal checks. The ACH process takes over when one-time or recurring payments have been scheduled. The increase in the popularity of this payment processing system among banks and other financial institutions is attributed to its reliable and secure function, as well as the benefits that it provides. Here are the primary benefits to be aware of.
Convenience
Single payments need to be authorized before any transaction can be completed. However, only one authorization is required for recurring payments. In addition to this, direct deposits are directly credited to a person’s bank account immediately, which is more convenient than making a trip to your bank.
Cost-Effectiveness
The number of electronic transactions has exceeded the number of paper check transactions for over 10 years now. For businesses and financial institutions that use Automated Clearing House processing, the savings are significant, based on the fact that it is 5 times cheaper than processing a paper check transaction.
Fund Access
When paper checks are deposited into an account, the account holder may have to wait up to 5 business days before they can use those funds. Conversely, the funds that are deposited to their account using the ACH process are available immediately.
Security
According to the FTC (Federal Trade Commission), over 10 million Americans every year are victimized by identity thieves. Roughly 85% of all identity thefts in the US result from hackers and identity thieves getting an individual’s personal information from sources such as bank statements, credit card invoices, or their personal checks.
Additionally, the primary benefit here is that ACH electronic transactions cannot be lost in the mail, misplaced, or stolen. Most problems are quickly and easily resolved. Originally, Automatic Clearing House payments and fund transfers were utilized by the traditional banking institutions. However, with the many advancements in internet technologies that have occurred over the past decade, we have seen the advent of payment processors.
