Study shows remittance info in wire transfer benefits firms

Bethesda, Md., July 15, 2009 -- U.S. corporations overwhelmingly confirmed the importance of receiving remittance information in wire transfers -- and banks would benefit as well, according to a new survey by the Association for Financial Professionals (AFP). Ninety-five percent of the 331 respondents said remittance information would be valuable to their organizations if it were made available in the wire transfer message. Organizations of all revenue sizes and wire volumes shared this view, especially larger companies and those with larger wire volumes.

While nearly all respondents expect the wire transfer enhancements to be valuable, a portion of respondents expect their wire volume to increase with the addition of remittance information.

Organizations today do not receive sufficient information with their wire transfers to post the payments to the correct accounts without manual intervention. AFP has been working the Federal Reserve Banks and The Clearing House, operators of the Fedwire(R) Funds Service and CHIPS(R), to develop a solution to this problem. The two organizations have agreed to expand their formats to provide remittance information with wire transfers by late 2010.

While 91% of wire transfer recipients -- the main beneficiaries of remittance information -- indicated they would use the new data to receive and post incoming wires, nearly two-thirds (61%) said they would include remittance information in outgoing wires, perhaps to reduce the number of inquiries from the receiver of the wire transfer.

"The results of this study are a ringing endorsement of this initiative," said Arlene Chapman, CTP, consultant to AFP. "It shows how valuable it will be to corporate customers -- and banks."

Bank cash management systems are the primary channel used by organizations to send and receive wires. When banks and software providers make this new format available, businesses will be able to accurately identify incoming payments and post them to the correct accounts without manual intervention and research.

Remittance resources:

Study: Providing Remittance Information with Wire Transfers: http://www.afponline.org/wiresurvey .

Background: http://www.afponline.org/wirebackground .

Video: http://www.afponline.org/wirevideo .

Payments Newsletter: http://www.afponline.org/paymentsnewsletter .

Contact: Ira Apfel at 301.961.8881 or iapfel@afponline.org

Source: Association for Financial Professionals (http://www.afponline.org/about )

About the Survey

In May 2009, the Association for Financial Professionals conducted a survey on the value to organizations of receiving remittance information with wire transfers and the systems and software they use to send and receive wire transfers. AFP sent surveys to over 3,000 corporate practitioner members and received 331 responses. After adjusting for misdelivered email, the response rate was nine percent. The 331 responses are the basis of this report. The survey questionnaire and report were produced by the Research Department of the Association for Financial Professionals, which is solely responsible for the content.

About AFP(R)

The Association for Financial Professionals (AFP) serves a network of more than 16,000 treasury and finance professionals. Headquartered in Bethesda, MD, AFP provides members with breaking news, economic research and data on the evolving world of treasury and finance, as well as world-class treasury certification programs, networking events, financial analytical tools, training, and public policy representation to legislators and regulators. AFP is the daily resource for treasury and finance professionals.

AFP's global reach extends to over 150,000 treasury and financial professionals worldwide, including AFP of Canada, AFP's gtnews, an on-line resource for the treasury and finance community, and the London-based bobsguide, a financial IT solutions network.

Source: Company press release.