Brookline Bank EVP & CDO Talks How Technology Continues to Make Advances in Payment Processing

Payment processing remains a crucial part of a bank’s service offering, even as the industry has shifted from analog to digital processing. In a relatively short time span, commercial payment processing has evolved from paper-based check payments dependent on U.S. Mail for delivery, to electronic payment options such as online bill payment, ACH, and wire transfers.

Technological advancements have created faster payment options supporting same-day and instant or near-instant payments. Regardless of payment method – the Clearing House RTP, the Federal Reserve’s FedNow, or Zelle – these new technologies can deliver and integrate payment data, to or from financial accounting software used by businesses. This seismic change in payment processing opened the door for Fintechs, once considered disruptors to financial institutions, to play an integral role in the payment ecosystem through innovation and their ability to bring to market solutions to banks and directly to their clients.

The ability to send and receive payment information in an automated and real-time manner brings significant processing efficiencies. However, with these benefits comes a correlating increase in fraud and security threats which require financial institutions to look at fraud mitigation in a layered approach to protect their customers’ payment flows.

As one might expect, the next frontier is Artificial Intelligence (AI) and its potential to improve the customer experience by analyzing and suggesting payments and cash management services to meet specific needs.

Brookline Bank’s team of bankers can inform, educate, and deliver industry-specific payments solutions. We provide a range of options for sending and receiving payments and tools to help lessen the risk of fraud, allowing our customers to decide which combination works best for their businesses.