Wal-Mart: 1st Interchange, Now ACH Posted by AVCU on 4:31 PM

First it was lowering interchange, now it's influencing how the nation's automated clearinghouse network is run. That's what Wal-Mart wants according to today's American Banker. During NACHA's annual conference this week, Wal-Mart executives said that banks have dragged their feet on potential rule changes that could benefit retailers and other non-bank companies, and that companies like Wal-Mart should be given voting power over ACH rules, and that "non-banks should have the opportunity to be direct members, to have votes on operating rules and to be eligible for [Nacha] board membership." Wal-Mart is a member of Nacha's councils on check electronification and electronic billing. The right to vote on operating rule proposals is reserved for Nacha's direct members, which can only be financial institutions. 


Wal-Mart scrapped its effort to charter an industrial bank in 2007 amid industry opposition. Today Wal-Mart is one of the biggest sellers of prepaid debit cards, through a partnership with General Electric Co.'s GE Money and Green Dot Corp.