Banks want to pick the best way to send each payment for you

A new industry report says banks should choose the best way to send each payment for their customers. The idea is to give people more payment options without making them decide between them. It matters most to business owners who move money often.

What the report says

The October PYMNTS Intelligence report, made with The Clearing House, is called "Why Multi-Rail Strategy Is Banking's Next Competitive Edge." A rail is a payment network, a system that moves money from one place to another. The report looks at how banks can coordinate cards, automated clearing house payments (the common bank transfer system), instant transfers, wires and digital assets.

Its third key finding is about choosing. Connecting to more systems creates options, but picking the right one for each payment is what turns those options into better service. The report compares it to a navigation app that picks a route based on the destination and current conditions. The customer says what they need, and the bank handles the details.

Where banks stand today

The report says different networks still serve different needs. Among surveyed financial institutions, 76% enabled RTP for business customers, while 40% offer FedNow. RTP and FedNow are two separate instant payment networks in the US.

What is not known yet

The material does not say which banks plan to offer this kind of automatic choosing, when customers would see it, or what it might cost. For now, a business owner can ask their bank which payment options it offers and whether it can pick the fastest, cheapest one.