The Cost of Capital Constraints in Real-Time Payments

Real-time payments are reshaping the way money moves. RTP® and FedNow® enable transactions that settle instantly, operate 24/7/365, and provide immediate finality. But for many fintechs, platforms, and financial institutions, the speed of payment execution is only part of the equation.

What’s the real challenge? Maintaining the funds needed to support those payments—at all times.

At Cross River, we process over $1 billion in real-time disbursements each month. Our customers rely on RTP® and FedNow® to deliver payments instantly. But before any of those transactions can be sent, funds must already be available in their accounts. This “good funds” requirement is a core feature of real-time rails—and it creates a meaningful operational hurdle.

Outflows are instant. Inflows are not.

Today, most inflows into our customers’ accounts come through ACH or wire transfer. These are trusted and effective rails, but they weren’t built for instant funding. ACH can take up to two business days to settle, and wires, while faster, are more costly and restricted to standard banking hours.

As a result, many organizations maintain excess balances or pre-fund accounts to avoid disruption. That ties up capital that could otherwise be deployed for growth, lending, or investment. It also places additional burden on treasury teams tasked with managing liquidity in an always-on environment.

A smarter path forward (with RfP)

Request for Payment (RfP) changes the equation. With RfP, our customers can request funds from accounts at other financial institutions across the RTP® network. Once approved, those funds are transferred instantly, directly into the account at Cross River—no delay, no batch settlement.

This capability supports better liquidity management, reduces reliance on legacy rails, and allows organizations to fund disbursements more efficiently.

RfP doesn’t just improve how money moves. It helps ensure that funds are where they need to be—when they’re needed most.