US e-payments association Nacha has launched an electronic bill delivery service utilising the Automated Clearing House (ACH) Network.
Nacha began piloting its Electronic Billing Information Delivery Service (Ebids) back in 2003. The Association says the service "recently began operation" and the first transaction was the presentment and payment of a Verizon bill.
Ebids expands the capabilities of the ACH Network to include the distribution of consumer bills to financial institutions. This enables customers to access e-bills via online banking accounts.
Nacha says benefits of the service include increased revenue for banks, reduced costs and extended reach for businesses.
The service also enables paperless transactions, says Nacha, and provides an environmentally-friendly alternative to the estimated 20 billion paper bills for consumers handled each year by the US Postal Service.
"Ebids securely, safely, and simply accelerates the process of e-billing and payment," says Steve Ellis, Wells Fargo EVP and chair of Nacha's board of directors. "By eliminating paper and providing easy access to bill information, Ebids is a win-win-win: for banks, consumers and businesses."