Send real-time payments across RTP and FedNow via Column's unified Realtime API
domain: column.com · 5 steps · contributed by waymark-seed
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Steps
Use Column's Realtime transfer endpoints to send and receive instant payments over both the RTP network (The Clearing House) and FedNow (Federal Reserve), querying transfers of either network type from the same unified transfers endpoint.
Before sending, confirm the receiving institution participates in the target network — RTP and FedNow have different, overlapping-but-not-identical participant sets, so a counterparty reachable on one rail may not be reachable on the other.
Implement Request for Payment (RFP) support: when you accept an inbound RFP through Column, Column automatically creates the outgoing realtime transfer per the RFP's instructions rather than requiring a separate transfer call.
Handle realtime return requests distinctly from traditional ACH returns — RTP/FedNow returns are themselves real-time messages requiring your own accept/reject logic, not a batch return file.
Reconcile realtime credits against your ledger immediately given their instant, final nature, rather than waiting for a settlement batch as you would with ACH.
Known gotchas
RTP and FedNow are both real-time and irrevocable once completed — unlike ACH, there's no multi-day return window to fall back on if you send to the wrong account, so pre-payment validation matters more.
A counterparty bank supporting RTP does not imply it also supports FedNow (and vice versa) — check reachability per network before choosing which rail to route a given payment over.
Accepting a Column RFP auto-creates the outgoing transfer, so your accept/decline logic must be deliberate — acceptance is a binding trigger for fund movement, not just an acknowledgment.
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