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As small businesses increasingly look for faster payment capabilities, banks are starting to see a potentially profitable market. The latest offering emerged early Wednesday with U.S. Bank’s unveiling of Enhanced Payments, a bundled offering accessible online and through the bank’s mobile app.
The new platform, open to entities with a U.S. Bank checking account, includes a number of services aimed at meeting demand among mid-size and smaller companies for faster-payments capabilities. These offerings include access to real-time payments, wires, and same-day automated clearing house transfers.
That access carries a subscription fee of $25 per month, though U.S. Bank notes that the service offers discounts on fees it normally charges for the access covered by the new bundle. It cites the example of domestic wire transfers, for which the bank normally charges $30 for customers using online banking. For Enhanced Payment users, the fee drops to $16.
Other Enhanced Payment services carry like discounts, according to the bank’s Web site. Standard ACH, for example, costs 50 cents per transaction versus the regular $1 charge, while same-day ACH drops to $1.70 per transaction from the normal $3. Instant payments can be accessed at 75 cents per transaction, compared to the regular $3 charge.
The new offering, as well as the fee discounts, are clearly aimed at reassuring small business owners about access to faster payment channels as well as the cost of that access. “This solution not only saves time and reduces costs, but it also gives business owners the flexibility and clarity they need to manage payments with confidence as they grow,” notes Shruti Patel, chief product officer for business banking at U.S. Bank, in a statement.
