Positive Pay — Goldman Sachs

Positive Pay from Goldman Sachs is a modern, enterprise-grade check and payments fraud prevention solution designed to protect corporate treasury operations and streamline payments reconciliation. Built for organizations that require high levels of security, operational efficiency, and seamless integration with existing payments infrastructure, the service combines automated validation, flexible exception workflows and advanced reporting to reduce risk, minimize manual effort and improve cash management visibility.

Key capabilities

• Automated file matching: Incoming clearinghouse and bank return files are automatically matched against issued check and ACH issue files, verifying payee name, account number, check number and amount to identify discrepancies in real time.
• Custom exception rules: Configure threshold and tolerance rules for amounts, partial matches, and payee variances to align with internal risk policies and allow trusted exceptions to proceed without manual review.
• Multi-channel exception handling: Route exceptions through configurable channels — web-based dashboard, secure file transfer, or automated API notifications — enabling treasury staff to review, approve, or return items efficiently.
• Enhanced authentication and audit trail: Maintain a complete, time-stamped audit trail of matches, overrides and approvals with role-based access controls, user authentication and integration with enterprise identity providers.
• Real-time and batch processing: Support for high-volume batch processing as well as near-real-time monitoring for high-value or time-sensitive items, enabling rapid response to potential fraud attempts.
• Scalable architecture: Designed to support businesses of varied size and complexity, with performance that scales for multi-entity, multi-currency and multi-bank arrangements.

How it works — typical workflow

1. Corporates upload or transmit an issue file containing authorized checks, ACH payments or electronic disbursements to the Goldman Sachs platform.
2. As items present for payment, clearing and return files are received and automatically matched against the issue file according to configured rules.
3. Items that match are paid automatically. Items that fail matching criteria are routed as exceptions for review.
4. Treasury users review exceptions via a secure dashboard or receive notifications through integrated channels to approve, reject or escalate items.
5. All decisions are recorded in a centralized audit log and reconciled to the general ledger and cash management systems for accurate reporting.

Benefits

• Reduced fraud exposure: By validating presented items against authorized issue data, Positive Pay significantly lowers the risk of unauthorized or altered payments being paid.
• Operational efficiency: Automation of matching and exception routing minimizes manual reconciliation work and reduces time spent investigating discrepancies.
• Stronger controls: Role-based approvals, configurable workflows and systematic audit trails strengthen internal controls and support regulatory and internal compliance requirements.
• Improved cash visibility: Faster, more accurate reconciliation supports better liquidity forecasting and working capital decisions.
• Customizable to business needs: Flexible rule engines and integration options allow the solution to be adapted to different industries, subsidiaries and banking relationships.

Integration and compatibility

Positive Pay is built to integrate with corporate ERP, treasury management systems and bank connectivity frameworks. Files can be delivered via secure file transfer, SFTP, host-to-host channels or through APIs for automated, programmatic exchange. Data formats supported include standard corporate and bank formats for issue and return files, and the platform can be configured to align with an organization’s existing data schemas and reconciliation processes.

Security and compliance

The solution employs enterprise-grade security practices, including encrypted data transport and storage, role-based access control, strong user authentication and detailed logging. Designed with regulatory compliance in mind, Positive Pay supports auditability requirements, segregation of duties and reporting needed for internal audits and external regulatory oversight. The platform also facilitates secure segregation of multi-entity or multi-location operations while preserving centralized monitoring capabilities.

Reporting and analytics

Comprehensive reporting and analytics are provided to give treasury teams insights into exception trends, fraud attempts, settlement timing and user activity. Dashboards present key metrics such as exception rates, time-to-resolution and top exception categories. Historical data and downloadable reports enable analysis for process improvement, policy refinement and executive-level reporting.

Deployment and support

Deployment options and onboarding services are tailored to each client’s environment and operational preferences. Implementation support includes file format mapping, workflow configuration, user training and testing. Ongoing client support is available to help optimize rule sets, scale operations and respond to evolving fraud patterns and regulatory requirements.

Use cases

• Large corporates seeking to standardize check and ACH validation across multiple subsidiaries and banking partners.
• Companies with high payment volumes that need to reduce manual reconciliation costs and speed cash operations.
• Organizations requiring enhanced fraud defenses and a documented audit trail for internal control and compliance purposes.
• Treasury teams looking to consolidate exception handling and reporting into a single, centralized platform.

Conclusion

Positive Pay from Goldman Sachs provides a robust, scalable and secure solution for protecting payment flows, improving reconciliation efficiency and strengthening treasury controls. With configurable rules, multi-channel exception handling and comprehensive reporting, the platform helps organizations reduce fraud risk, streamline operations and gain clearer visibility into their cash position.

Address Bank: 200 West Street, New York City, New York, U.S.
Bank: Goldman Sachs
Headquarters: New York City
Products: Payments & Treasury
Type: Positive Pay