FIS launches cloud-based payments solutions
Since the adoption of the 2nd Payment Services Directive (PSD2), real-time payments in Europe have raced ahead from other nations or regions. Lagging behind in the adoption of real-time payments, the North American commercial payments industry is playing catch-up.
This week, Florida-based payments software provider FIS has launched a new cloud-based software as a service (SaaS) platform RealNet, which will enable account-to-account transactions for US businesses, consumers and institutions over The Clearing House’s real-time payments networks.
The FIS RealNet platform will perform the task for all organizations across industries such as to send, receive and accept payments with consumers, businesses or even with their own employees. As mentioned, the platform will work as a “network of network” using a range of existing domestic and cross-border payment rails which would ‘simplify and speed up the processing, clearing and settlement of payments’.
The platform identifies the fastest route which the company says is a ‘smart-routing decision engine’ that finds the cost-efficient option for a given payment in real-time which can be ACH, same-day ACH, Wires and RTP and it automates the end-to-end process.
Last year, The Clearing House had roped in FIS to boost small bank access to the RTP network.
Global Head of Real-Time Payments at FIS Raja Gopalakrishnan said this platform will power a “real-time economy, regardless of industry, whether business-to-business, business-to-consumer, consumer-to-business, government-to-consumer or anything in-between”.
Being a cloud platform, RealNet will utilise APIs to integrate with other FIS core banking and payments solutions. The company mentions that this platform will be available in the US followed by the UK and Europe with additional markets later this year.
Commercial Payments International reached out to FIS seeking clarifications on the initiative but at the time of publication, the company did not respond to questions.
As mentioned in the footnotes of the press release, “FIS will provide a technology platform that orchestrates these services. Payment services/funds transfer capability will be provided by a network of regulated financial institutions subject to their terms and applicable laws and regulations”.