The payments industry is changing – fast. According to Statista, digital payments (including any payment made over the internet and payments made via mobile device at the point of sale) are expected to grow 12.7% year over year, and will account for over $6.5 trillion worldwide by 2023.
With the rapid growth of faster payments – or “payments in which the transmission of the payment message and the availability of final funds to the payee occur in real time or near-real time, and on as near to a 24-hour and 7-day basis as possible” – comes a variety of concerns, from accessibility to security. Not surprisingly, the industry’s leaders want a say in the path that’s being paved.
That’s where the U.S. Faster Payments Council (FPC) comes in. Lead by some of the payment industry’s key players, the FPC aims to enable all Americans to “safely and securely pay anyone, anywhere, at any time, and with near-immediate funds availability.” Let’s take a deeper dive into the FPC and its goals.
Discover how mobile point of sale (mPOS) is revolutionizing payments.
When Was the FPC Formed?
The FPC was created in November 2018 by the Faster Payments Task Force, a group of hundreds of stakeholders that came together – with Federal Reserve support – to form the Governance Framework Formation Team (GFFT). The GFFT was tasked with developing and implementing a governance framework that was inclusive of all of its stakeholders and facilitated faster payments in America, which is the FPC.
Who is a Part of the FPC?
The FPC is open to all stakeholders in the U.S. payment system, and it welcomes everyone from corporations to small businesses to individuals. Founding sponsors of the FPC include:
- Bankers’ Bank
- Ceridian
- Corporate One
- Early Warning
- ICBA Bancard
- Mastercard
- NEACH
- North American Banking Company
- Open Payment Network
- SHAZAM
- Target
- TD Bank
- The Bankers’ Bank
- The Clearing House
- Visa Inc.
- The Bank of New York Mellon
- First Data
- Goldman Sachs Bank USA
- JPMorgan Chase Bank & Co.
- Walmart
What is the FPC’s Mission?
Simply put, the FPC’s mission is to enable ubiquitous faster payments in the U.S. According to its website, the FPC has three pillars of guiding principles: inclusiveness and fairness; flexibility and responsibility; and transparency. More specifically, some goals the FPC has are:
- Addressing issues that inhibit the adoption of faster payments
- Enhancing the safety and security for service providers and users of faster payments
- Developing guidelines to address opportunities and issues
- Creating an education and awareness program to foster a better understanding of faster payments
Click here to view the FPC’s full framework.
What Comes Next
The FPC is planning to hold its first in-person meeting at the end of May 2019, so we expect to hear an update on its next steps shortly after. The council is also currently searching for its permanent Executive Director. During a time when payments are changing faster than ever, we’re interested to see how the FPC will affect the industry!
