Positive Pay at First Hawaiian Bank

Positive Pay from First Hawaiian Bank is a fraud prevention and reconciliation solution designed to help businesses protect their cash flow and reduce exposure to altered, forged, or counterfeit checks and unauthorized electronic payments. This service combines automated matching, secure file handling, and exception management to give treasury teams greater control and visibility over outgoing payments and returns. With Positive Pay, organizations can strengthen internal controls, streamline daily reconciliation, and improve confidence in their payment processes.

Key Benefits

• Fraud reduction: Detects unauthorized checks and suspicious items before they clear, minimizing losses from check fraud and unauthorized electronic debits.
• Automated reconciliation: Matches issued checks and approved ACH transactions against items presented for payment, significantly reducing manual effort and reconciliation time.
• Real-time decisioning: Provides timely alerts and exception reports so treasury staff can make rapid decisions to pay or return items.
• Customizable workflows: Supports role-based exception routing, multi-user approvals, and configurable exception thresholds tailored to an organization’s risk tolerance and operational needs.
• Auditability and reporting: Maintains a secure audit trail of decisions and actions, simplifying internal audits and regulatory compliance reviews.

How It Works

Positive Pay operates as a two-part process: issuance reporting and presentation matching. First, your organization submits a secure file or uses online entry to report all issued checks and eligible electronic payments, including check number, account number, issue date, payee, and amount. When items are presented for payment, First Hawaiian Bank compares each item to the submitted issuance file. Items that match the expected data are paid automatically. Items that do not match—such as those with altered amounts, mismatched payees, duplicate numbers, or unexpected ACH transactions—are flagged as exceptions for review.

Types of Coverage

• Check Positive Pay: The core service that validates presented checks against a list of issued checks. Ideal for companies that routinely issue paper checks and want to prevent unauthorized check clearing.
• ACH Positive Pay: Extends the same protection to ACH debits by allowing your team to approve or return ACH items before settlement, reducing ACH debit fraud risk.
• Reverse Positive Pay: For organizations that prefer to review cleared items instead of pre-submitting issue files, Reverse Positive Pay presents the items that have cleared for your approval or return.

Operational Workflow and User Experience

First Hawaiian Bank’s Positive Pay integrates with existing cash management and online banking platforms to ensure a seamless experience. Typical workflow steps include:

1. Upload or transmit the issue file containing check or ACH payment details through a secure channel.
2. Review daily exception reports delivered via the online portal or secure file transfer.
3. Flag exceptions as pay, return, or escalate for additional review based on established policies.
4. Record final decisions and allow the system to process payments accordingly.

Security and Compliance

Security is central to Positive Pay operations. All file transmissions and portal sessions are protected using industry-standard encryption and multi-factor authentication to guard sensitive payment information. The service supports role-based access control so organizations can define who can submit issue files, view exceptions, and authorize payments. Detailed logs document every action taken, providing an auditable history for compliance and internal controls.

Reporting and Analytics

Comprehensive reporting tools provide insight into exception activity, fraud trends, and operational performance. Standard reports include daily exception summaries, historical payment activity, and item-level detail that help treasury teams identify patterns and make data-driven decisions. Analytics can be used to refine issuance practices, adjust account controls, and inform fraud prevention strategies.

Implementation and Integration

Implementing Positive Pay at First Hawaiian Bank is designed to be straightforward and customer-focused. The bank works with each client to understand file formatting requirements, connectivity options, and internal approval workflows. Integration options accommodate a variety of accounting and check-issuing systems, enabling automated file generation and transmission. Training and documentation are provided to ensure smooth onboarding and to maximize the value of the service from day one.

Best Practices

• Submit issue files daily and ensure they include complete, accurate details for all issued payments.
• Establish clear internal policies for exception handling and ensure segregation of duties between submitters and approvers.
• Use ACH Positive Pay in combination with Check Positive Pay for comprehensive coverage across payment types.
• Regularly review exception trends and adjust internal controls or payment processes to reduce risk exposure.

Who Should Consider Positive Pay

Positive Pay is especially valuable for businesses that issue a high volume of checks, have elevated exposure to payment fraud, or require strong audit controls and regulatory compliance. Organizations of all sizes—from small businesses to large enterprises—can benefit from tailored Positive Pay solutions that align with their operational complexity and risk profile.

Conclusion

First Hawaiian Bank’s Positive Pay service offers a proactive, efficient, and secure approach to preventing check and ACH fraud while simplifying reconciliation and strengthening internal controls. By combining automated matching, flexible exception handling, and robust reporting, Positive Pay helps organizations protect working capital, reduce losses, and gain confidence in their payment processing operations.

Address Bank: First Hawaiian Center Honolulu, Hawaii, US, USA
Bank: First Hawaiian Bank
Headquarters: Honolulu
Products: Payments & Treasury
Type: Positive Pay