What is Direct Credit?

How Does it Work?

  • Whenever the payer makes a direct credit into the payee’s account, the related bank gets a notification of such a transaction. In this case, the bank will record the amount by which the payee’s account is credited as soon as the transaction is made. However, there will be a difference in the books of accounts of the bank and the payee.The payeePayeeA payee refers to a person, business, government, or any other entity that receives payment for providing goods or services.read more will record a deposit transaction, in this case, only when he receives bank intimation of credit. On the other hand, the bank shows a higher balance as it receives the amount ahead of the payee. Further resolution to such differences is subject to reconciliation of statementsReconciliation Of StatementsA reconciliation statement contains a list of differences between bank balance as per bank statement, books of accounts, debtor-creditor reconciliation, debt balance reconciliation, or any other reconciliation with a difference in the records of two separate legal entities, and it aims at nullifying the difference.read more.

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Example of Direct Credit

Assume a cloth business accountant pays his supplier $5,000 every month to purchase packaging. He does that on the 1st of every month through direct credit. Let’s suppose it is the 31st of March today, and the money will be credited to the supplier’s account tomorrow. The bank account of the supplier will look like this:

  • Date: 3.31.2020Account balance:Account Balance:Account Balance is the amount of money in a person’s financial account, such as a savings or checking account, at any given time. Furthermore, it can refer to the total amount of money owed to a third party, such as a utility company, credit card company, mortgage banker, or other similar lender or creditor.read more $1,00,000

Upon credit, the account will look like:

  • Date: 4.1.2020Credit: $5,000Account Balance: $1,05,000

The supplier will make a reconciliationReconciliationReconciliation is the process of comparing account balances to identify any financial inconsistencies, discrepancies, omissions, or even fraud. At the end of any accounting period, reconciliation involves matching balances and ensuring that debits (credits) from one account for one transaction is same as the credit (debits) to another account for the same transaction.read more entry into his books of accounts to realize the income received through a direct credit. The entry will look like this:

  • Bank account debited by $5,000Purchase account credited by $5,000

Uses and Importance

These systems are used worldwide, with prominent ones being the ACH (Automated Clearing House) network of the United States and the Australian direct entry system.

#1 – U.S.A.

  • ACH is the national clearinghouse of the U.S. that operates on automation. ACH functions in both direct credit and direct debit. Nationwide, payments are made through this system, but many transactions are related to payrollPayrollPayroll refers to the overall compensation payable by any organization to its employees on a certain date for a specific period of services they have provided in the entity. This total net pay comprises salary, wages, bonus, commission, deduction, perquisites, and other benefits.read more and social security. ACH networks held a cumulative $50 trillion worth of monetary payments in 2018.The main usages the ACH is put to are eCommerce payments, social security-related benefits, tax refunds, business-to-business payments, rents, consumer bills, etc.

#2 – Australia

  • Australia uses a direct entry system as a means of direct credit fund transfer. The AuAustralia uses a direct entry system to direct credit fund transfers. The Australian body for clearing and settling transactions on electronic systems is the APCA (Australian Payments Clearing Association). The system uses a BSB and account number for a unique set of combinations for accounts. Apart from this, the Big FourBig FourBig Four refers to the top four accounting firms in the world that audit more than 80% of the US public companies. These firms are Deloitte, Pricewaterhouse Coopers, KPMG, and Ernst & Young. These firms have earned this title because of their huge size, good reputation and the worldwide reach in the field.read more banks in Australia use a BPAY bill payment system among them, which APCA does not regulate.The system brings in cost synergies in more than one way. Banks and institutions using direct credit have gained immensely by cutting excessive staffing and training needs. The paperless system also allows for greater flexibility and easier storage (electronic nature).

Advantages

  • It is a faster and easier method of money transfer.These transfer methods also save time and costs like processing, conveyance, and printing charges.Direct depositDirect DepositDirect deposit is a technique of sending money from the payer’s account to the payee’s account digitally, without any paper cheques. For example, companies use it to transfer salaries into their employee’s accounts.read more methods also come with automation that allows an automated deduction from one account to credit the other desired account.There is no need to visit banks to deposit money, thus saving a lot of paper and physical toil.In cases where government organizations or companies/employers must credit the payees’ accounts periodically and regularly, direct credit becomes a preferred choice.

Disadvantages

  • There are very few disadvantages to direct credit. However, in case if a person has overdrawn his account, the periodic money deposit will be used by banks or financial institutionsFinancial InstitutionsFinancial institutions refer to those organizations which provide business services and products related to financial or monetary transactions to their clients. Some of these are banks, NBFCs, investment companies, brokerage firms, insurance companies and trust corporations. read more to cover the overdraftOverdraftOverdraft is a banking facility that offers short-term credit to the account holders by allowing them to withdraw money from their savings or current account even if their account balance is or below zero. Its authorized limit differs from customer to customer.read more.It should be noted that it comes with the limitation of characters and size, so the payer involves remittance advice upon transaction. It helps easily recognize transactions and any meaningful reference code that establishes a unique relationship between the two parties.Most commonly, references are account numbers, purchase invoice numbers, national identification numbers, and identification codes.

Conclusion

  • Many employers have an all-electronic system to pay their employees, suppliers, etc. Direct credit comes with many advantages and has gained popularity among businesses. This fund transfer system helps avoid missing payments, and the onus of keeping up with regulations as the banking institutions involved are prepared to care for such issues.It is vital to the operations of banking and financial institutions, including governmental and non-governmental bodies, as it has successfully borne the load of voluminous payments taking place all around. These are purposeful when the transacting parties have sufficient know-how of each other, and the payer has the discretion of payments without payee involvement.

This article has been a guide on what direct credit is & its Meaning. Here we discuss the example of direct credit and how it works, along with its uses & importance, advantages, and disadvantages. You can learn more about it from the following articles –

  • Trade CreditBank CreditCredit FacilityCredit Balance