With so many new, digital payment solutions emerging, it can be difficult for corporations, government entities and transportation agencies to stay fully connected and up to date on these new solutions. With end customers increasingly demanding access to the latest solutions, BNY Mellon and Conduent dive into the potential benefits of Payments-as-a-Service (PaaS).
The payment space in the US is rapidly evolving, with new real-time payment solutions, innovative overlay services and improvements to existing rails emerging. As these new capabilities become available, corporations, government entities, and transportation agencies are working hard to meet the growing demand from their end customers for more digital payment options.
The good news is that PaaS solutions can seamlessly connect users and their end customers with a comprehensive suite of digital payment and collection solutions – enabling all parties in the chain to take advantage of the latest payment innovations.
Real-time payments are taking hold in the US, with The Clearing House’s RTP® network now well established (RTP is a registered service mark of The Clearing House Payments Company L.L.C.), and the Federal Reserve’s FedNow℠ Service due to launch mid-2023. At the same time, new overlay services are available, which allow organizations to use registered identifiers – such as an email address or mobile phone numbers – to send and request electronic payments to consumers and small businesses.
Together, these and other developments are unlocking a host of benefits for end customers, including greater convenience, immediacy and security, as well as more transparency on the status of a payment. For example, instead of having to actively request a payment status, the information is available on-demand 24/7/365 and is provided via push notifications.
Digital payment methods are also helping to move the industry away from paper-based payment methods, such as checks. Each year, roughly 2.3 billion checks are written by customers to US corporations as a means of paying their bills. By migrating more of these payments away from paper, and the associated physical transportation, digital solutions are providing an opportunity to significantly reduce the cost and the use of paper from using checks.
By taking full advantage of these new payment solutions – and the added value they bring – corporations can look to improve their customers’ experience to remain competitive and gain market advantage.
However, shifting to new payment systems can be time consuming and costly. Utilising PaaS is one way to address these challenges. With PaaS, various payment solutions can be bundled into a single platform that is provided to users via a seamless integration, all while reducing time to market. This can connect users to faster and more cost-effective payment options, while providing customers with a convenient and transparent way to make and receive payments.
For example, Conduent’s Digital Integrated Payments Hub, which leverages BNY Mellon’s digital payment capabilities (including Real-Time Payments and Tokenized Payments) can enable users to immediately request, receive and distribute funds. The Digital Integrated Payments Hub uses a simple API to connect clients seamlessly and quickly to a host of digital solutions via a single connection.
So how exactly can PaaS solutions have a real-world impact? Imagine if a customer was to buy a product from a pharmaceutical company, but wasn’t satisfied. If the customer requests a refund, it would typically be sent via check, which is not only costly for the pharmaceutical company to execute, manage and reconcile, but it likely means that the customer won’t receive the check for more than a week, and once received, will have to go through the deposit process. However, if the pharmaceutical company were using a PaaS provider, such as Conduent, the customer would be able to pick an instant and digital disbursement method while on the phone to the customer care representative.
PaaS could also change how transportation agencies are paid. Tolling authorities, for example, have largely moved away from physical booths and cash payments. Today, cameras are being used to flag the numbered plates of cars passing through the toll road – and this information is then being used to bill the driver shortly afterwards. By providing connections to the latest payment capabilities, PaaS can do the heavy lifting for the tolling authority and ensure that end customers have access to a full range of payment options, enhancing the customer experience.
In the new faster payment environment, it is vital that organizations can provide their end customers with the options and capabilities they need to send and receive payments efficiently and securely. There is not a single, optimal channel that can solve every issue and meet all requirements – making it crucial to have a variety of options ready for instant deployment.
Andrew Haskell is Head of Immediate Payments at BNY Mellon
Kathy Mertes is Vice President and Head of Digital Payments at Conduent
BNY Mellon is a global investments company dedicated to helping its clients manage and service their financial assets throughout the investment lifecycle. Whether providing financial services for institutions, corporations or individual investors, BNY Mellon delivers informed investment and wealth management and investment services in 35 countries.
Conduent delivers mission-critical services and solutions on behalf of businesses and governments – creating exceptional outcomes for its clients and the millions of people who count on them. Through our dedicated people, processes, and technologies, Conduent solutions and services enhance customer experience, increase efficiencies, reduce costs, and improve performance for most Fortune 100 companies and more than 500 government entities.
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