US Payment Ecosystem
FedNow, RTP, legacy rails, card networks, and the regulatory landscape shaping American payments.
7Systems
1Countries
166Articles
Key Initiatives3
FedNow vs RTPEXPANDING
1,600+ FedNow participants
Dual instant payment rails — adoption race and volume comparison
Go deeper →Same-Day ACHACTIVE
NACHA's faster ACH — $1M per-transaction limit since March 2022
Go deeper →FedNow InternationalPLANNED
Cross-border instant payment potential under exploration
Go deeper →Core Infrastructure7
Federal Reserve Systems
Fedwire Funds ServiceFedwire
Fedwire Funds Service is the United States' Real-Time Gross Settlement system, operated by the Federal Reserve Banks. It...
Reference page →FedNow ServiceFedNow
FedNow is the Federal Reserve's instant payment service, launched in July 2023 to enable US financial institutions to se...
Reference page →FedACH / ACH NetworkFedACH
The ACH Network is the backbone of US retail payment processing, handling over 30 billion transactions annually — payrol...
Reference page →US Payment Infrastructure OverviewUS Payments
The United States operates a unique dual-operator payment infrastructure model. The Federal Reserve provides Fedwire (RT...
Reference page →Private Sector Rails
Real-Time PaymentsRTP
The RTP network is the first modern instant payment system in the United States, launched by The Clearing House in Novem...
Reference page →Clearing House Interbank Payments SystemCHIPS
CHIPS is a large-value USD payment system operated by The Clearing House, processing approximately $1.8 trillion daily. ...
Reference page →Zelle P2P NetworkZelle
Zelle is a person-to-person (P2P) digital payments network operated by Early Warning Services, enabling real-time money ...
Reference page →Electronic Payments NetworkEPN
The Electronic Payments Network (EPN) is the only private-sector ACH operator in the United States, operated by The Clea...
Reference page →RTGS 2 systems
ACH 2 systems
FPS 3 systems
Regulatory Landscape10
10dJul 18, 2026HIGH
GENIUS Act stablecoin regulation implementation
Federal stablecoin regulatory framework signed into law July 18, 2025. OCC, Fed, FDIC, Treasury must issue implementing regulations by July 18, 2026. Act takes effect on earlier of 18 months from enactment (Jan 18, 2027) or 120 days after final regulations issued. OCC proposed rules published Feb 25, 2026; comment period ends May 1, 2026. State issuers with >$10B outstanding must transition to federal supervision within 360 days.
129dNov 14, 2026HIGH
SWIFT CBPR+ structured address mandate
SWIFT mandates structured postal addresses in all CBPR+ ISO 20022 messages. Unstructured address fields will no longer be accepted for cross-border payments. Financial institutions must ensure all counterparty address data is structured. Industry reports suggest ~44% of banks are behind schedule for Nov 2026 deadlines.
129dNov 14, 2026HIGH
SWIFT CBPR+ SRP case management mandate
SWIFT mandates adoption of the Status Reporting Process (SRP) for case management in CBPR+ ISO 20022 messages. All participants must support standardized exception and investigation handling via camt messages. Also in Nov 2026: MT101 discontinuation. Full end of MT/MX coexistence targeted for Nov 2028.
266dMar 31, 2027HIGH
Visa/MC US merchant interchange class action settlement
Revised $38 billion settlement (Nov 2025) in US merchant class action against Visa and Mastercard, after 2024 $30 billion version was rejected. New terms: 10bp reduction in average effective credit interchange rate for 5 years, cap on standard consumer credit card rates at 1.25% for 8 years, new merchant rights to decline high-cost cards and add surcharges by card category including ability to refuse most expensive rewards cards. Covers approximately 12 million merchants. NRA, NACS, Walmart among objectors. Judge Cogan granted preliminary approval June 9, 2026. Final approval expected late 2026 or early 2027.
723dJun 30, 2028
Fedwire extended operating hours
Fedwire expanding to 22 hours/day, 6 days/week, 365 days/year. Significant change for correspondent banking and cross-border payment windows.
Cross-Border Connections3
Primary cross-border messaging for US banks.
CLS
Multi-currency FX settlement — largest by value.
Potential cross-border instant payment corridors under study.
Country Guides1
Latest Intelligence166
RegulationJul 8, 2026
OCC Proposes Weekly and Quarterly Reporting Forms for Stablecoin Issuers Under GENIUS Act
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency published proposed reporting forms on June 11, requiring permitted stablecoin issuers to submit weekly activity and reserve data and quarterly condition reports under the GENIUS Act framework with a 60-day comment period.
NewsJul 6, 2026
Federal Reserve Study Shows ACH Reached Three-Quarters of US Noncash Payment Value in 2024
ACH transfers claimed a record share of US payment value while credit cards outpaced debit growth for the first time since 2000, according to the Fed's three-yearly review of 2024 transaction data.
NewsJul 4, 2026
RTP Network Processes $576 Billion in Q2 2026 as Daily Average Hits $6 Billion
Network participation stood at over 1,260 financial institutions as of May 2026. The quarterly figure brings the RTP network's cumulative total since its 2017 launch to 1.6 billion transactions worth more than $3 trillion.
RegulationJul 4, 2026
GENIUS Act Faces Certain Deadline Miss as NCUA Comment Period Closes Day Before July 18 Cutoff
No federal agency has published final GENIUS Act stablecoin regulations with 14 days remaining until the statutory July 18, 2026 deadline. The NCUA's operational standards comment period does not close until July 17, making timely completion of all six rulemaking tracks impossible and triggering the Act's fallback effective date of January 18, 2027.
NewsJul 3, 2026
Federal Reserve Triennial Study Records 236.6 Billion Noncash Payments in 2024
The Federal Reserve's 2025 triennial payments study, released July 1, finds that ACH payments accounted for nearly three-quarters of noncash payment value for the first time. Credit card payments grew faster than debit for the first time in almost a decade.
Reference Documents6
Operating Rules
Federal Reserve Operating Circular No. 6 (Fedwire Funds)
Federal Reserve · vJanuary 2026 · Jan 5, 2026
Federal Reserve Operating Circular No. 8 (FedNow Service)
Federal Reserve · vApril 2026 · Apr 1, 2026
FedNow Service Operating Procedures
Federal Reserve · vVersion 3.2 (February 2026) · Feb 13, 2026
RTP System Operating Rules
The Clearing House · vEffective 01-01-2026 · Jan 1, 2026
RTP Participation Rules
The Clearing House · vEffective 07-21-2025 · Jul 21, 2025