Positive pay - An Overview What is Positive Pay?

Positive  Pay is an automated fraud detection service offered by the US Commercial Bank.

Positive pay is informing the bankers about the checks your  company has issued.

  How does Positive Pay work?

For instance, ABC Company issues approximately 500 checks every Monday. After the checks are cut, ABC Company transmits to their bank, a list of the checks that are being issued (check number and dollar amount etc...). This list is imported into Bank's computer.

      Later, when the checks are presented to Bank for payment, Bank matches each check presented against ABC's previously transmitted lists. If the presented checks' numbers and amounts appear on a previously submitted list, the check is sent through for payment. If both items do not match, the check is not cleared.

 

 How would be the positive pay file?

           Positive pay file structure is specific to the banks. Each bank has its own format. We need to get information from the bank about their file format with details of header, record count, amounts etc., A customized program to map these fields is required. After the

automatic payment run, if this program is executed, it will generate the positive pay file in the bank's required format..  

There is a standard T Code – FCHX, program RFCHK0E0 which extracts the information of checks issued from the system but the file format which it creates is different than what is required by the Bank. It also stores the file on the SAP Application server. 

RFCHKE00 program reads the data from PAYR, BNKA, T012 (House bank) and T012K (House bank Account).

 How do we execute Positive Pay?

 Procedure:                                                                                                      Step-1:  Copy the program RFCHKE00 and create a ZRFCHKE00.

        Step-2:  Create Z T-code (Ex:-ZFCHX). We need to take the help of ABAPer to create the Positive pay file as per the format specified by the Bank.

        Step-3: After issuing the checks (Manual checks issue or through APP), we have to execute T-code ZFCHX.

        Step-4: Once the T-code ZFCHX has been executed, the program ZRFCHKE00 will extract the data in to a Positive Pay file which we have mapped      with the help of ABAPer as per the format specified by the bank.

       Step-5:  The file which has got generated in Step-4 will be stored in SAP Directories (T-code AL11) or as per the file path we specify.

       Step-6:  Positive Pay information can be transmitted to Bank through processes like FTP, EDI (IDOCs) as these are secure more sophisticated than others

Process followed by client:

 

Step1 : Checks are printed and sent to the vendors. Checks are printed using standard program RFFOUS_C

Step 2: Simultaneously an electronic check file (positive pay file) is sent out to the bank as an advance information. Check file is created using standerd Program RFCHKE00 / Transaction FCHX

Step 3: The bank honors only those checks which are covered in the positive pay file.

 

Currently one of the banks out many, has made norms stricter for comparison of information in check file and Check image. If there is any difference in payee information, then checks are not honored.

 If vendor name is populated in field 1 as well as field 2 of vendor master, then in this scenario, we are facing the issue. Because

1.       Check printed via program RFFOUS_C displays the field Name 1 as well as Name 2 of vendor name in vendor master. But

2.       Check extract created using transaction FCHX creates a file with vendor name in only field 1 of vendor master. Information in Name 2 field is ignored.