Citi Offers Digital Bill Payment Through RTP Network

Citi’s Treasury and Trade Solutions (TTS) division has begun to allow digital bill payment through the RTP network, The Clearing House’s (TCH) real-time payment network, according to a press release.

The new program — a first in the U.S., per the release — will benefit Citi’s institutional and consumer clients.

“With this capability, Citi’s institutional clients in the U.S. can send electronic bills (eBills) via Request for Payment (RfP) messages to retail account holders at Citi and other participating banks,” the company said in the release. “Consumers, meanwhile, benefit from the flexibility to pay their bills immediately, at any time of day, 365 days a year, with greater control over their finances to help avoid overdraft fees.”

Citi said in the release that RfP provides institutional billers benefits such as acceleration of funding of received payments, real-time visibility into when payments will be settled, and the elimination of the operational exceptions associated with ACH direct debits and other payment methods.

Meanwhile, Citi retail account holders who choose to receive eBills via RfP will get the ability to pay their bills immediately. Unlike ACH payments or paper checks, RfP payments are completed and settled in real time, the release stated. These customers will also get complete control over the timing of their payments, including whether and when to authorize and schedule payments.

“We are excited to be the first bank with the capability to offer real-time bill payments to our millions of U.S. customers,” said Citi Head of Retail U.S. Segments and Products Kate Luft in the release. “This capability further helps to remove friction in the payment process, providing our customers with more options to pay how and when they choose.”

The news comes less than a week after another first involving TCH. Last week, Interactive Brokers Group announced it is working with J.P. Morgan for TCH’s real-time messaging service. Interactive Brokers is the first brokerage in the U.S. offering this service to select clients.

Read more: JPMorgan Powers Real-Time Funding, Trading for Interactive Brokers