NACHA's PAYMENTS 2006 - Check and ACH Alignment

"Changes come so quickly in the payments industry that knowledge of the latest developments is now the currency of success," said Elliott C. McEntee, President and Chief Executive Officer of NACHA - The Electronic Payments Association. "PAYMENTS 2006 is the premier payments industry conference providing the know-how for organizations and professionals to adapt to and manage changes."

On Monday, May 8, 2006, Henry C. (Ric) Duques, Chairman and CEO of First Data Corporation, will deliver a keynote address entitled "Shaping the Future of Electronic Payments."

On Tuesday, May 9, NACHA will present an Industry Agenda, looking at the future prospects for convergence among check and ACH payments. The advent of successful payment products such as remote deposit and ARC offers the tantalizing possibility of joint check and ACH collection services. These services could enable businesses and financial institutions to take advantage of best-clearing decisioning on every check. The back-office conversion proposal, if implemented, could accelerate this convergence.

PAYMENTS 2006 will offer more than 160 educational sessions and workshops featuring speakers from financial institutions, companies, government agencies, consulting and research firms, and service providers. New this year is a Card Solutions track focusing on the issues, challenges, opportunities and trends associated with card-based solutions for payment and payment-related business needs.

In addition to Card Solutions, the other educational tracks are The Payments Biz, Corporate Payment Solutions, Automated Clearing House, eCheck, and Global Focus. Sessions include numerous case studies from financial institutions and companies, original research findings from consulting and research firms, as well as a NACHA State of the Union.