Big changes to the Nacha Operating Rules lie ahead in 2026, as risk management plays an ever-increasing role in the ACH Network. And to borrow a line from The Beatles, you might want to get by with a little help from your friends. In fact, collaboration is going to be key. 

“On the sending side, there is the ability—written into the Rules—to rely upon different partners, as long as that’s done in a meaningful way, such as through contract—ACH origination agreements, for example,” said Amy Morris, Nacha Senior Director, ACH Network Rules. “You have the ability as the Originator to say, ‘OK, I’m going to do A-B-C; my vendor is going to do X-Y-Z; my financial institution is going to do 1-2-3.’ And so that really helps the collaboration there.” 

Speaking on Nacha’s Payments SmartCast podcast, Morris said “working with a vendor is actually a big benefit in this type of scenario” because vendors are looking at far more volume than just your own, allowing for what Morris called “a higher visibility into those transactions, and the ability to recognize more trends outside of just your own activity.” 

Choosing the right vendor may seem daunting, but Stephany Kirkpatrick, Founder and CEO of Orum, said it comes down to “making your buying decisions in the right way and vetting your partner.” Orum is an API for fast, reliable payments which was designed to simplify money movement in all directions, primarily for B2B. Orum is a Nacha Preferred Partner for Compliance/ACH Experience and is Nacha Certified. 

As Kirkpatrick noted on the podcast, Orum, with its API, plus “our direct connection to the Fed, and our certification with Nacha puts us in a very different position than a lot of folks that just send a file to a bank and don’t do a lot of controls.” 

Kirkpatrick said that being Nacha Certified means Orum has gone through a “very rigorous process” and meets “very strict criteria for compliance and risk management.” 

“I think both the layered in component of our first-of-its-kind instant bank account verification solution—Verify—coupled with our ability to do a lot of technical analysis on a payment, are all the reasons why you should go with someone certified as a technology company, as opposed to just picking cheapest.” 

Much more was discussed, and you can listen to the complete podcast below.