Launched in December 2014, the New Access Model is designed to broaden access to the Faster Payments Scheme, ensuring real-time payments are widely available to UK consumers and that Payments Service Providers (PSPs) are operating on a level playing field.

ACI Worldwide is already taking a leading role with Faster Payments through its experience working with the majority of PSPs currently signed up to the Scheme. The company now intends to offer services and support to new members through the delivery of both single and multi-tenanted aggregator services.

Paul Thomalla, SVP global corporate relations and business development, ACI Worldwide, commented:

“ACI has been at the heart of the UK Faster Payments Scheme since it was launched in 2008. Today, the majority of real time payments in the UK are being supported by ACI’s technology and software solutions. To-date, the scheme has achieved significant success in providing real-time payment and settlement services for small businesses and consumers, but there is more work to do before real-time payments realise their full potential.

“The UK has been at the forefront of implementing a real-time payments environment. Many countries across the world are now moving towards setting up their own real-time payments systems, and they are looking to the UK as it prepares to enter the next phase in the on going payments revolution.

“We are proud to support the Faster Payments Scheme as it opens up access to new payments services providers, stimulates competition and increases transaction limits - all of which will drive the growth and value of real-time commerce across the economy.”

The extension of UK Faster Payments is consistent with a key ambition of the new Payment Systems Regulator to review access to UK payments systems and open it up to all payment services providers.

Mike Banyard, head of development, Faster Payments, commented: “Customer demand for real-time payments is quickly becoming a fact of life, and the change is creating huge opportunities for technology providers to meet the needs of prospective challenger banks that need to access 24/7 payments for their customers.”

“The Faster Payments Scheme is working to catalyse this new market for vendors and challengers through our New Access Model, so we are delighted by the enthusiastic response from the vendor community. ACI is among the providers at the forefront of this change, developing solutions to help challenger banks and other PSPs to leverage the benefits of real-time.”

The Faster Payments Scheme is currently reviewing and re-engineering its Assurance and Accreditation process to streamline the adoption procedures for both aggregators and PSPs by year end 2015. ACI has signed its Letter of Commitment (LoC) stating that it fully intends to support the new model and accreditation process, becoming one of the first accredited aggregators in the Faster Payments space.