Thankful for the Member-Driven Accomplishments of 2023

Like many of my American friends and colleagues, I was able to take time over our Thanksgiving holiday to enjoy and appreciate loved ones and reflect on all we have to be thankful for. I think I speak for all of us at the FPC when I say we are truly thankful for our Members, as well as our extended industry community. The commitment and dedication of our Members to working to advance faster payments is unmatched, and it is exemplified in all that we’ve been able to accomplish this year. And the enthusiasm, passion, and support of the greater industry for our goal of ubiquitous faster payments for all fuels our efforts and helped make it possible for us to achieve all that we have in 2023.

In 2023, thanks to member efforts and industry encouragement, from an Industry and Outreach perspective, we’ve been able to:

• Present the FPC vision at 22 industry events including Nacha’s Smarter Faster Payments, AFP, a host of Payments Association events, and more;
• Publish 24 episodes of the “Off the Rails from the FPC” podcast featuring prominent industry leaders including, Mark Majeske of Alacriti; Art Brieske of Wells Fargo; Josh Karoly of Netflix; and others;
• Distribute nine press releases on faster payments topics and FPC news;Advance industry understanding of faster payments through the release of nine new educational resources to include: Faster Payments Service Provider Catalogue; White Paper on Blockchain & Crypto in Payments: Transforming the Way Money Moves; Faster Payments Bridge Financial Inclusion Article; 2023 Faster Payments Barometer Infographic and Video; Cross-Border Payments Work Group Bulletin.03 on Central Bank Digital Currencies; Faster Payments Glossary of Terms; Survey on Faster Payments Readiness for Financial Inclusion; Operational Considerations for Instant Payments Receive-Side Primer; and the Faster Payments Use Case Repository Questionnaire, which all can be found in the FPC’s Knowledge Center; and
• Launch Module 1 of the Faster Payments Professional Certificate program in partnership with Nacha, with the launch of Module 2 coming in the next few weeks.

• Put on two successful in-person Member Meetings, with more than 30 hours of education and networking, over 90 member and guest speakers, and more than 350 attendees;
• Host two Town Hall events on Nacha’s New Risk Management Framework and the 2023 U.S. Faster Payments Barometer; and
• Provide instructional videos on Faster Payments and Payments Networks through the FPC’s Learning Management System.

• Maintain a strong membership base of more than 190 Members;
• Lead 10 Work Groups that have been delivering key resources, tools, and information to drive the industry forward including the Cross-Border Payments, Directory Models, Education & Awareness, Financial Inclusion, Fraud, Operational Considerations for Instant & Immediate Payments, QR Code Interface, Real-Time Recurring, and Secure Instant & Immediate Payment APIs Work Groups, as well as the Digital Assets in the Financial Industry Work Group, which was launched this year; and
• Support expanding Member and industry needs with five FPC staff members.

It really has been an accomplished year for us, with so much we’ve been able to achieve. But the year is far from over, and there is plenty more to be done. Through December, we’ll continue to work on current efforts and plans that will set faster payments priorities for 2024. These efforts, and the continued perseverance of our Members and the greater industry, will help to ensure our work continues and faster payments flourish in 2024 and beyond.

Make sure you can play a part in our prioritization efforts and planning for 2024 by becoming an FPC Member if you aren’t one already. Learn more at:  https://fasterpaymentscouncil.org/Why-Join-the-FPC.