Circle and Plaid integrate to speed up ACH payments

Ellie Duncan
24 Sep 2021

Global fintech firm Circle has integrated with data network Plaid to make it quicker and easier to connect bank accounts and accept ACH payments.

Following the integration, Circle said it has enabled ACH payment and payouts for customers including Dharma, Linus, and Lemonade Finance, which means they can now directly connect their bank accounts, without sharing details with Circle, while reducing risk.

“ACH payments are increasingly critical as digital finance becomes the ‘new normal’,” said Paul Williamson, head of revenue and partnerships at Plaid.

“However, historical processes and infrastructure don’t properly support the increase in money flowing online between accounts.

“Innovative companies like Circle offer easier ACH processing combined with the power of Plaid’s instant auth and account verification for better money movement experiences.”

Dante Disparte, Circle’s chief strategy officer and head of global policy, added: “Seamless, trusted payment infrastructure is essential for enabling global economic commerce on the internet and we’re proud Plaid’s network will help customers experience how automation can power frictionless value exchange.”

Using Circle’s payments and payouts APIs, ACH payments automatically settle as USD Coin (USDC) and payouts enable automatic conversion from USDC into ACH transfers.

It said that, when combined with Circle digital dollar account APIs, customers can build treasury management and payments applications that also tap into the “global reach and cost-efficiency” of dollar digital currencies like USDC.

According to Linus co-founder and COO Matthew Hamilton, the Circle and Plaid combination has streamlined its business’s fiat to crypto operations.

“It’s resulted in faster settlement times, reduced operational overhead, and improved user experience,” he added.

Earlier this year, Plaid teamed up with Square to enable US merchants to more easily process ACH payments.