Nacha has launched Project Action (ACH Credit Transactions Intitiated Online), an independent membership programme to develop a payment product for Internet transactions utilising Automated Clearing House (ACH) credits. Twenty-five organisations, including eight financial institutions have signed up to the programme.
Members of Project Action include: Alabama ACH Association, Alltel Corporation, Bank One, BB&T Corporation, BCE Emergis, CheckFree Corporation, Citibank, Corillian Corp., Fidelity Investments, FirstWebBancorp, Fort Knox National Company, InteliData Technologies Corp., iBill, LML Payment Systems, Mid-America Payment Exchange, Network 1 Financial, Royal Bank of Canada, Southwest Corporate Federal Credit Union, T. RowePrice, U.S. Postal Service, VeriSign Inc., VeriStar Corporation, Wachovia Bank, and Wells Fargo Bank.
Under the Action payment model, a buyer (a consumer or business) would initiate a payment to a seller via its own financial institution, rather than authorising the seller to debit its account. This feature enhances security of payments while reducing many of the risks, says the association. It is envisioned that Action will be used for consumer-to-business, business-to-business, and electronic bill payments initiated on the Internet.
Elliott mcEntee, president and CEP of Nacha, says: "An advantage of the ACH Network is the ability to process credit payments, in which funds are pushed to sellers or other payment recipients...Currently, other payment methods require account information to be provided to sellers, that then attempt to authenticate the buyer and pull funds from buyers' accounts."
The next business meeting of Project Action members will be held on June 20-21 in Chicago. Members will develop the product design, technology requirements, and business plans, such as revenue models.