Executive Summary
The FedNow Workshops in Richmond, Charlotte, and Jacksonville this year highlighted the operational simplicity, digital onboarding improvements, and strategic opportunities for financial institutions (FIs) adopting instant payments. Early adopters shared positive experiences, emphasizing streamlined reconciliation, minimal exceptions, and customer-driven adoption without extensive marketing.
The discussion also underscored the urgency for FIs to participate in FedNow to remain competitive and to meet consumer expectations shaped by platforms like Zelle and Venmo. As of the presentation of these workshops, FedNow has been implemented in all 50 states; has 40 certified service providers; and is adding over 30 new FIs each month. With transaction fees waived through 2025, the workshop encouraged early engagement to build familiarity before standard pricing begins.
Top Takeaways
1. Simplified Reconciliation and Exception Management
- FedNow transactions have significantly fewer exceptions compared to ACH.
- Most exceptions occur only when a transaction is rejected, making exception processing minimal.
- This simplification reduces back-office workload and operational costs.
2. Digital Onboarding and Streamlined Implementation
- The new FedNow onboarding tool eliminates paper agreements.
- All forms and approvals are completed digitally via DocuSign, accelerating time-to-market for participating institutions.
- Financial institutions can control which customers or use cases are allowed to originate FedNow payments as part of its risk management and customer due diligence.
3. Incentive for Early Adoption
- Per-transaction fees are waived through 2025, incentivizing institutions to join early.
- Early adoption allows FIs to experiment, fine-tune processes, and build customer familiarity before standard fees apply.
4. Organic Customer Adoption Success Story
- One FI successfully added FedNow as a simple payment option within online banking, alongside ACH, card, Zelle, and Vemno, without a major marketing push.
- Customers naturally began using it, demonstrating that visibility and accessibility can drive adoption.
5. Competitive Pressure from Consumer Apps
- Platforms like Venmo and Zelle sometimes tell users that instant transfer features are unavailable because their FI doesn’t offer instant payments.
- This message creates direct customer pressure on non-participating FIs to join the network.
6. Low Exception Volume Impact on Operational Risk
- The perceived challenge of exception management is overstated; real-world data shows extremely low exception rates.
- This contrasts sharply with ACH, where exception handling can be resource-intensive.
7. Strategic Pricing Considerations
- FIs must decide early whether to charge for instant payments.
- Starting with free services may make it difficult to introduce fees later, especially in a competitive market.
8. Evolving FI Pricing Models
- Most institutions plan to allow receiving FedNow payments for free, while charging for sending.
- Monetizing FedNow aligns with how financial institutions price high speed payment options such as wire transfers and is offered as a value-added service to their business/treasury customers.
9. Market Differentiation Opportunity
- Adopting FedNow early positions FIs as innovators and responsive to customer demand for real-time, always-available payments.
- Customers are asking for a better experience and greater value; FedNow presents opportunities to attract younger customers and onboard additional small businesses clients.
- Early movers can leverage this as a marketing differentiator without heavy investment.
- FedNow Service transaction limit increased from $ 1 million to $10 million effective November 2025.
Attendee Testimonial:
“Attending this workshop was a valuable experience. From the moment the session began, it was clear that the team was committed to fostering an open, informative, and collaborative environment. Every question, no matter how detailed or nuanced, was met with thoughtful, thorough responses. The willingness of FedNow experts to engage, listen, and guide us through this transformative initiative has made them an invaluable resource.”
If you are interested in participating in a FedNow Workshop in 2026, complete this form to get on our early interest list.
Get more insights into FedNow and other instant payments rails at ePayConnect 2026, held February 23 - 25 at the Gaylord National Harbor.