http://paymentsviews.com/2011/04/06/reflections-on-nacha-payments-2011
Included was a description of what Wal-Mart wants to see from the bank ACH network:
- same-day ACH clearing (mandatory as opposed to opt-in)
- same day credits
- mobile payments
- corporate eChecks (push ACH transactions)
Looks like Walmart might like Bitcoin?
Incidentally. Most bitcoins purchased using PayPal, Dwolla and PopMoney today do result in an ACH transaction. I'm not sure how many people selling bitcoins and receiving funds in PayPal, Dwolla, etc, then withdraw to their bank afterwards though.
There's plenty of this type of P2P payments activity on #bitcoin-otc:
http://bitcoin-otc.com/vieworderbook.php?notes=paypal
http://bitcoin-otc.com/vieworderbook.php?notes=dwolla
Also mentioned in the article was FedGlobal ACH payments:
Quote
International ACH is not intended to replace wire transfers, but is meant to be an alternative to check payments for non-urgent, low dollar transactions to and from foreign countries. The Fed is partnering with Equens for transactions to/from Europe (SEPA) and with Arias for transactions to/from Latin America.
http://frbservices.org/serviceofferings/fedach/fedach_international_ach_payments.html
Also from the same author was another recent article:
Research Results: Need for Faster, Easier Cross-Border Payments
Quote
Participants would like to move away from reliance on wire transfer systems, especially for mid-value international payments.
http://paymentsviews.com/2011/04/04/research-results-need-for-faster-easier-cross-border-payments/[edited]