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NEWS RELEASE
CONTACT:
Michael Herd
mherd@nacha.org
"What's an ARC?"; Financial Institutions Should Prepare to Answer Customer Inquiries, NACHA Advises
Herndon, Virginia, August 11, 2003
– NACHA – The Electronic Payments Association has issued an ACH Operations Bulletin providing guidance to receiving depository financial institutions (RDFIs) on answering customer inquiries on ARC payments.
"Indications from the marketplace are that the ARC e-check application is now being widely adopted," said Elliott C. McEntee, President and Chief
Executive Officer of NACHA. "As a result, more consumers are beginning to experience the ARC check conversion process. Financial institutions should be able to respond knowledgeably to customer inquiries about
these payments."
ARC - the Accounts Receivable Entry e-check application – became effective on March 15, 2002, and is used in consumer bill payment. In the
ARC check conversion process, a consumer's check sent to a remittance location is converted into an Automated Clearing House (ACH) debit. NACHA estimates that 55 million checks have been converted to ARC
payments in the first half of 2003.
The NACHA Operations Bulletin provides RDFIs with information on, and suggested answers to, the types of questions they can expect to receive from
their customers. The bulletin also provides a list of additional RDFI resources, including the new Electronic-Check.org web site.
NACHA issues an ACH Operations Bulletin when an issue exists that should be understood and addressed by all ACH participants. In this case,
the operations bulletin is directed to all financial institutions – commercial banks, savings banks, and credit unions – that receive ACH payments on behalf of their depositors. NACHA estimates the number
of such institutions to be 20,000 nationwide. The Operations Bulletin is available in its entirety on NACHA's web site at www.nacha.org.
About NACHA - The Electronic Payments Association
NACHA is the leading organization in developing electronic solutions to improve the payments system. NACHA represents more than 12,000
financial institutions through direct memberships and a network of regional payments associations, and 650 organizations through its industry councils. NACHA develops operating rules and business practices for
the Automated Clearing House (ACH) Network and for electronic payments in the areas of Internet commerce, electronic bill and invoice presentment and payment (EBPP, EIPP), e-checks, financial electronic data
interchange (EDI), international payments, and electronic benefits transfer (EBT). Visit NACHA on the Internet at www.nacha.org.
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