NACHA Announces 'NACHA Challenge' Finalists
HERNDON, Va. (PRWEB) April 13, 2016 -- NACHA—The Electronic Payments Association® announced today the finalists for the NACHA Challenge, a team competition to foster new ways to improve the ACH end-user experience by filling market gaps or removing friction points. More than two dozen teams from corporates, solution providers, financial institutions and other innovators, thinkers and practitioners submitted proposals for consideration.
Finalist teams will compete for a $15,000 Judges’ Choice and $10,000 Audience Choice prize. The teams will present their proposals at the PAYMENTS 2016 conference taking place April 17-20 in Phoenix, Arizona, where the winners will be announced.
PAYMENTS 2016 is the premier educational event for the payments industry. Financial institutions of all types and sizes, solution providers who are changing the market, corporate decision makers and government end-user customer organizations gather annually at the conference to network, learn how to improve their bottom line and increase their competitiveness to move the payments industry forward. Online registration is available here.
“As part of NACHA’s pursuit of innovation and change, we challenged the marketplace to offer ideas to help us further improve the ACH end-user experience. We appreciate all of the participation from within the payments ecosystem and beyond in our inaugural NACHA Challenge,” said Scott M. Lang, AAP, senior vice president, Association Services at NACHA.
“All of the entries were very original and addressed a key industry need, which made for a very competitive and difficult selection process. But we are excited about the finalists and their ideas to help enable even more consumers, businesses and governments to use and benefit from ACH payments,” Lang said.
Teams were asked to identify a gap or friction point related to the ACH end-user experience, describe the solution or approach to address it, and indicate who will benefit and how. Finalist teams and their proposals include:
- “Team ClearXign” – a back-office operations solution to allow businesses to make payments using the ACH system without sharing, storing and managing account information. Proposal submitted by MineralTree in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
- “Team Curmudgeon” – create a new Standard Entry Class Code to identify securities transactions to allow for faster settlement. Proposal submitted by United Bank in Charleston, West Virginia.
- “Team Real Time Royals” – a real-time application program interface (API) to allow financial institutions and merchants to validate transactions via the ACH Network in real time. Proposal submitted by Royal Credit Union in Eau Claire, Wisconsin.
Finalist selections were made by a panel of judges comprised of the PAYMENTS 2016 Conference Planning Committee and leadership of NACHA’s Payments Innovation Alliance.
The finalist teams will present their proposals for the Judges’ Choice prize to a panel of judges on Monday, April 18, in the PAYMENTS 3D Innovation Hub on the Exhibit Hall Floor at PAYMENTS 2016. On Tuesday, April 19, audience members at the 2016 NACHA Payments System Awards Luncheon, sponsored by TD Bank, N.A. will have the opportunity to cast their votes for the Audience Choice prize.
Recipients of the Judges’ Choice and Audience Choice prizes will be announced following the keynote speaker of the Awards Luncheon, which recognizes outstanding innovative achievements in the payments industry.
About PAYMENTS 2016
PAYMENTS 2016, which is taking place April 17-20 at the Phoenix Convention Center in Arizona, is a proven, well-respected, and powerful event that provides attendees with the latest research, industry pilot results, insights, trends and forecasts to support and drive payments innovation. Information is delivered through interactive educational sessions and workshops with renowned speakers from financial institutions, corporations, government agencies, legal and regulatory bodies, consulting and research firms, service providers and more. Content is organized along six newly identified tracks— ACH: Now & Next; Surety: Rules, Regs & Risk; Impact: Trends & Technology; Strategy: Plan & Position; Experiences: Corporate & Consumer; and Buzz: Disrupt & Debate – to address the topics of today that are impacting the payments space. In addition, a dynamic Exhibit Hall of industry leaders features top products and services shaping the future of payments. Registration is now open. To learn more about PAYMENTS 2016, visit payments.nacha.org.
NACHA — The Electronic Payments Association
Since 1974, NACHA – The Electronic Payments Association has served as trustee of the ACH Network, managing the development, administration and rules for the payment network that universally connects all 12,000 financial institutions in the U.S. The Network, which moves money and information directly from one bank account to another, supports more than 90 percent of the total value of all retail electronic payments in the U.S. Through its collaborative, self-governing model, education, and inclusive engagement of ACH Network participants, NACHA facilitates the expansion and diversification of electronic payments, supporting Direct Deposit and Direct Payment via ACH transactions, including ACH credit and debit payments, recurring and one-time payments; government, consumer and business transactions; international payments, and payments plus payment-related information. Through NACHA’s expertise and leadership, the ACH Network is now one of the largest, safest, and most reliable systems in the world, creating value and enabling innovation for all participants. Visit nacha.org for more information.
Kendra Beasley, NACHA - The Electronic Payments Association, +1 (703) 561-3923, [email protected]
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