Payments Milestones

Same-day ACH payments rolled out in the United States last Friday. All U.S. bank now settle payments during the business day using the 40-year-old electronic payment system. The United States has a number of years to go before its once cutting-edge electronic systems catch up to the standards of today's state-of-the-art realtime payment systems, in which funds are in the bank and available immediately (or very close to it).

The bleeding edge of electronic payments, which can settle more complex cross-border payments immediately and at low cost using cryptocurrencies, will join other FinTech innovations on the agenda of this week's annual SIBOS conference, held by the banking industry's other over-40 electronic messaging systems, SWIFT. The Daily FinTech provides a preview.

The new kids are coming, ready or not.

Two bank CEOs that clearly understand FinTech
The most successful banks are nimble enough to embrace new technologies while maintaining the personal customer service touch, writes Tim Melvin for Finxtech. Melvin highlights the work of Home Bancshares in Conway, Arkansas and Citizens Bank in Edmond, Oklahoma. “Banks want to be sure the product works and all the bugs and kinks have been worked out before offering their customers.”

Why FinTech firms are winning the battle for digital consumers
The “State of the Digital Customer Journey” report shows that not only are banks and credit unions of all sizes not ready to compete with FinTech firms, some are failing to meet customers’ expectations of having a seamless experience, according to The Financial Brand.

Why hybrid lending will become mainstream
Given that marketplace lending is expected to reach $290 billion by 2020, mainstream lenders like Citibank and Goldman Sachs are starting their own marketplace lending platforms or partnering with competitors. In a post for BankNxt, Auke Douwe Veenstra outlines the factors driving marketplace lending and why hybrid lending could become the new normal.

Who’ll help small business get credit-score ‘fit’?
Firms like Credit Savvy and SocietyOne are offering people access to their credit score. According to Daily FinTech, there could be a similar opportunity for a FinTech startup to open up credit score access for small businesses, perhaps for online lenders.

Regulators lean on financial firms to explain industry to them, study shows
A new survey, commissioned by the CFA Institute, found that financial regulators often rely a bit too much on the companies they oversee to explain how their businesses work. The issue of regulators’ coziness with the firms they supervise hasn’t gone unnoticed from leading financial regulators, writes Gabriel Rubin for The Wall Street Journal, adding that some have taken steps to reduce interactions between regulators and the companies they oversee.

Top six robo-advisors for managing your investments
Wondering what’s the best robo-advising platform for your needs? MoneyLion breaks down the top platforms, their unique features and how much capital is required. Those looking to start investing with a low account balance should try Betterment, but customers with higher account balances and a need for a human advisor can turn to Vanguard or Personal Capital.

THE BLOCKCHAIN WATCH
It might take longer than you think for the future of banking to arrive
Ripple Labs has been developing an infrastructure for sending international payments between banks using blockchain, according to Fast Company. But instead of relying on a digital currency like Bitcoin, they’ve created XRP, a “digital asset” that carries value across distributed ledger technology. Even with these advancements, blockchain payments have a long way to go before becoming mainstream.