Financial institutions (FIs) BNY Mellon and Citi have joined forces with wireless network provider Verizon to offer the ability to send request-for-payment messages to Citi banking customers, according to a Wednesday (Sept. 15) press release.
Verizon customers with Citibank accounts can pay their bills instantaneously, any time of the day, while using BNY Mellon’s e-bills and payments component. In addition, those customers can also use Citibank Online to schedule payments. The companies laud the collaborative effort as better than ACH transactions or paper check payments because of the immediacy with which the payment clears.
Payment scheduling is becoming increasingly important, and a common expectation among many people looking to simplify the traditional process of writing out checks for various bills each month.
As PYMNTS reported recently, the Federal Reserve is preparing to launch FedNow, an instant payments service, with a tentative debut of 2023. According to the article, customers pay two-thirds of their bills through one-off transactions, despite the ease of setting up recurring bill payments. Businesses and consumers alike are already embracing real-time payment solutions. The Clearing House’s Real-Time Payments service is used by more than 100 FIs, ranging from small banks to large branches such as Bank of America, Bank of New York Mellon, and J.P. Morgan Chase.
Read more: FedNow Follows TCH to Enable Instant Bill Pay
The BNY, Citi and Verizon payment option is being touted as a win for people who live paycheck to paycheck or gig economy workers who may not have a definitive payday.
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“While setting up automatic bill payments is convenient for many customers, living with weekly budgets or irregular income streams can be a challenge,” said Kate Luft, Citi’s head of retail U.S. segments and products. “Real-time bill pay gives people greater control to pay the bills they want to pay, precisely when they want to pay them.”
