STRATEGIC PARTNERS
February 21, 2002
LOS ANGELES -- NACHA - The Electronic Payments Association has launched a new Web site to promote the use of electronic bill presentment and payment (EBPP) by billing companies. The site -- www.ebilling.org -- was developed by NACHA's Council for Electronic Billing and Payment.
"Consumer use of electronic bill payment will increase substantially as more bills are presented electronically," said Susan R. Gustafson, the Council's chairperson. "The Council, through the eBilling.org web site and other initiatives, is working to educate billers about the business processes and transaction flows involved in EBPP. Our goal is to encourage companies to accelerate their adoption of electronic billing and acceptance of electronic payments."
The eBilling.org web site includes:
• "What is EBPP.," which defines EBPP, identifies the benefits for both the billing company and the consumer and provides information about the EBPP marketplace, such as statistics and regulatory information.
• "How it Works," which explains the various bill presentment models (biller direct, third-party consolidation and consumer consolidation), payment models (biller originated debits, consumer initiated credits and third-party originated debits and credits), and explains other service elements, starting with the customer's enrollment. This section also identifies the parties involved in each presentment and payment model and explains their roles.
• "EBPP Resources," which provides a glossary of terms and links to other sources of information about EBPP.
The site will soon add a "Getting Started" section that will provide billers with a process to consider options, build a business case, prepare a Request for Proposal and plan the implementation.
"EBPP automates the end-to-end billing and payment process for companies, consumers and financial institutions," said Jane Wallace of Bank of America and vice chairperson of the Council. "eBilling.org is a resource for billing companies to help them realize the extraordinary potential of EBPP in an easy-to-understand way so they can make educated choices that best meet their requirements."
The Web site, which will continue to be updated as the industry evolves, addresses the benefits of EBPP for billing companies such as cost savings, enhanced customer relationships and customer care, brand reinforcement, cross-selling opportunities and integration with cash
management functions.
The Council for Electronic Billing and Payment was formed in 1993 to act as a forum to facilitate, educate and promote the use of electronic consumer-initiated billing and payment programs and services to all interested stakeholders in the payments industry. The Council currently has 80 members.
More information is available on the Council's web site at NACHA.
