Domestic
PAYMENTS SIGNAL · REFERENCE CARDA Fedwire funds transfer (US RTGS)
A high-value dollar payment settles one-for-one across the banks' accounts at the Federal Reserve, in real time and with finality — no netting, no waiting for a cycle.
Actors
- Originator (payer)customer
- Bank Alfa (sending bank)bank
- Federal Reserve (Fedwire)infrastructure
- Cassia Bank (receiving bank)bank
- Beneficiarycustomer
Messages
No standard message — a book / internal transfer.
The sequence
| # | Step | Route | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Instruction — The originator requests a wire | Originator → Bank Alfa | message |
| 2 | Validate & screen — Bank Alfa validates and screens | Bank Alfa | internal |
| 3 | Debit originator — Bank Alfa debits the originator | Bank Alfa | posting |
| 4 | Fedwire message — Bank Alfa sends the payment to Fedwire | Bank Alfa → Fedwire | message |
| 5 | Gross settlement — The Fed settles the payment in real time | Bank Alfa → Cassia | settlement |
| 6 | Credit advice — Cassia is advised of the settled payment | Fedwire → Cassia | message |
| 7 | Credit beneficiary — The beneficiary is credited | Cassia | posting |
Exception rails
| Rail | Trigger | Where the money ends up | Next action |
|---|---|---|---|
| Not enough in the Reserve account | Bank Alfa's account at the Federal Reserve does not hold USD 5,000,000.00 at the moment the message arrives. | Debited from the originator; the beneficiary is paid only once the sending bank funds settlement. · Settlement waited on liquidity — the payment did not settle until the Reserve account was covered. | Bank Alfa — Bank Alfa manages its intraday liquidity so high-value wires do not stall late in the day. |