Definitions for "Automated Clearing House"
The ACH network is a nationwide electronic funds transfer system for participating depository financial institutions. The American Clearing House Association, Electronic Payments Network, Federal Reserve and Visa act as ACH Operators, central clearing facilities through which financial institutions transmit or receive ACH debits and credits. The ACH network serves 20,000 financial institutions, 3 million businesses, and 100 million individuals. The ACH Network is commonly used for direct deposit of payroll and government benefits such as Social Security, direct payment of consumer bills, business-to-business payments, federal tax payments, and, increasingly, e-commerce payments. In 2000 there were 6.9 billion ACH payments made worth more than $20 trillion.
A collection of 32 regional electronic interbank networks used to process transactions electronically with a guaranteed one-day bank collection float.
The Automated Clearing House is a paperless entry system controlled by the Federal Reserve. This system is networked with other banks in order to clear and settle debit and credit transactions without the use of physical checks.