Galileo integrates with Plaid to simplify ACH transfers
Galileo has announced a new partnership with Plaid, the Visa-acquired open banking fintech.
ACH payments in the US still operates on the same rails it started with decades ago
Galileo, recently acquired by SoFi, will be integrating its platform with Plaid. This will see it simplify the bank authentication process.
How does the integration work?
The integration will streamline the initiation of automated clearing house (ACH) transfers and the connection of bank accounts. Joint clients of Galileo and Plaid will benefit from the new integration.
“Leveraging Plaid’s technology, we’re excited to offer a simplified process for our clients and minimise ongoing requirements to initiate ACH transfers,” says Clay Wilkes, Galileo’s CEO.
“Plaid has removed the complexity of meeting that expectation by making it simple for developers to authenticate customers’ bank accounts.”
The partnership makes integrations with Plaid easier for joint clients, and it avoids clients having to do their own ID and balance checks.
The routing and transit number is verified before the banks receive the transaction. This means sponsoring banks associated with the accounts benefit from the minimised transaction risk.
Maturity of ACH payments
The ACH network, which handles America’s electronic payments, processes billions of transactions each year. These include Social Security payments, mortgages, salaries, credit card payments and peer-to-peer (P2P) transfers.
And whilst this integral payments system has undergone some improvements in recent years, it still operates on the same rails it started with decades ago.
“ACH payments have become increasingly popular for many consumers,” says Lowell Putnam, Plaid’s head of partnerships.
“However, the infrastructure and user experience around these payments hasn’t kept up with this new demand.”
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