Remittance Info in Wire Transfers Benefits Firms, Banks -- Study

Positive impact on wire transfer volume expected

BETHESDA, Md., July 13 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- U.S. corporations
overwhelmingly confirmed the importance of receiving remittance information in
wire transfers -- and banks would benefit as well, according to a new survey
by the Association for Financial Professionals (AFP). Ninety-five percent of
the 331 respondents said remittance information would be valuable to their
organizations if it were made available in the wire transfer message.
Organizations of all revenue sizes and wire volumes shared this view,
especially larger companies and those with larger wire volumes.

While nearly all respondents expect the wire transfer enhancements to be
valuable, a portion of respondents expect their wire volume to increase with
the addition of remittance information.

Organizations today do not receive sufficient information with their wire
transfers to post the payments to the correct accounts without manual
intervention. AFP has been working the Federal Reserve Banks and The Clearing
House, operators of the Fedwire(R) Funds Service and CHIPS(R), to develop a
solution to this problem. The two organizations have agreed to expand their
formats to provide remittance information with wire transfers by late 2010.

While 91% of wire transfer recipients -- the main beneficiaries of remittance
information -- indicated they would use the new data to receive and post
incoming wires, nearly two-thirds (61%) said they would include remittance
information in outgoing wires, perhaps to reduce the number of inquiries from
the receiver of the wire transfer.

"The results of this study are a ringing endorsement of this initiative," said
Arlene Chapman, CTP, consultant to AFP. "It shows how valuable it will be to
corporate customers -- and banks."

Bank cash management systems are the primary channel used by organizations to
send and receive wires. When banks and software providers make this new format
available, businesses will be able to accurately identify incoming payments
and post them to the correct accounts without manual intervention and
research.

Remittance resources:
Study: Providing Remittance Information with Wire Transfers:
http://www.afponline.org/wiresurvey

Background: http://www.afponline.org/wirebackground

Video: http://www.afponline.org/wirevideo

Payments Newsletter: http://www.afponline.org/paymentsnewsletter

Contact: Ira Apfel at 301.961.8881 or iapfel@afponline.org

Source: Association for Financial Professionals
(http://www.afponline.org/about)

About the Survey
In May 2009, the Association for Financial Professionals conducted a survey on
the value to organizations of receiving remittance information with wire
transfers and the systems and software they use to send and receive wire
transfers. AFP sent surveys to over 3,000 corporate practitioner members and
received 331 responses. After adjusting for misdelivered email, the response
rate was nine percent. The 331 responses are the basis of this report. The
survey questionnaire and report were produced by the Research Department of
the Association for Financial Professionals, which is solely responsible for
the content.

About AFP(R)
The Association for Financial Professionals (AFP) serves a network of more
than 16,000 treasury and finance professionals. Headquartered in Bethesda, MD,
AFP provides members with breaking news, economic research and data on the
evolving world of treasury and finance, as well as world-class treasury
certification programs, networking events, financial analytical tools,
training, and public policy representation to legislators and regulators. AFP
is the daily resource for treasury and finance professionals.

AFP's global reach extends to over 150,000 treasury and financial
professionals worldwide, including AFP of Canada, AFP's gtnews, an on-line
resource for the treasury and finance community, and the London-based
bobsguide, a financial IT solutions network.

SOURCE Association for Financial Professionals

Ira Apfel of Association for Financial Professionals, +1-301-961-8881,
iapfel@afponline.org