Automated Clearing House Payment System Go Live.

Muscat, Nov 19 (ONA) --- As part of its endeavour to continuously

enhance the payment infrastructure in the country, the Central Bank of

Oman (CBO) announced the GO-LIVE of the redesigned Automated

Clearing House (ACH) payment system on 18th November 2017, the

National Day of the Sultanate of Oman, thereby attaining one more

milestone of providing a safe and secure electronic payments

environment in the country.

CBO has undertaken this initiative of implementing the

redesigned ACH System for retail payments, based on a web

technology empowered by powerful security standards, which consists

of direct credit and direct debit transactions, coupled with Mandate

Management System (MMS) for direct debit transactions and the

Wages Protection System (WPS) module, in collaboration with the

Ministry of Manpower (MOMP). It attempts to ensure efficiency for the

multiple credit and debit transactions.

ACH system solution handles the clearing cycle for the

transactions exchanged between banks on 24/7 basis, within the

country and settling the cleared payments transactions in the Real-

Time Gross Settlement (RTGS). Interoperability and flexibility with other

third party systems is ensured through a set of standard message

formats and Straight Through Processing (STP) capabilities. The MMS

ensures that the authorized mandates for the direct debits are available

in the system for verification when any direct debit transaction is

effected. The WPS is a module that serves the objective of

guaranteeing the basic rights of employees in the private sector by

applying systematic control and auditing process by MOMP and

ensures obtaining the wages on time. The WPS module promises to

satisfy the reporting requirements for CBO & MOMP.

The direct credit module, provides a convenient platform for the

customers of the banks to credit the accounts of single/multiple

beneficiaries by a single debit to their account. Hence, it facilitates

faster and efficient e-payments, such as salary transfers, dividend

payments etc. The direct debit module, provides the facility for the

beneficiaries to debit the accounts of multiple payers and seek single

credit, such as bill payments, periodic repayments etc. This is

accompanied with a direct debit mandate given by the payer to the

beneficiary extending power to debit payer account, following a

prescribed process. The mandate is stored in the MMS and available

for verification during a transaction. Hence, the above enables faster

and timely processing of bill payments, dividend payments, salary

transfers, person-to-person fund transfers, person-to-business, person

to government, etc. Accordingly, the system helps in advancing the

economic cycle by faster movement of funds. The WPS is an attempt

to ensure that the employees are paid their salary by the employers

through the banking channel, which is processed through the direct

credit module of the ACH.

CBO has always been the forerunner in providing a safe and

secure environment for the payments in the country. CBO

acknowledges the efforts taken by the stakeholders and their

cooperation in ensuring the smooth Go-live of this ACH project.

--- Ends/KH

Copyright (C) 2017. Oman News Agency. All rights reserved. Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. ( Syndigate.info ).

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Publication:	Oman News Agency
Geographic Code:	7OMAN
Date:	Nov 19, 2017
Words:	500
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