The Federal Reserve Board has announced that it will expand the operating days for two of its large-value payment services, the Fedwire Funds Service and the National Settlement Service (NSS), to include Sundays and weekday holidays. The change is planned to take effect no earlier than 2028, giving time for operational and industry preparations.
Currently, both Fedwire Funds Service and NSS operate from Monday through Friday, excluding holidays. With this expansion, the Reserve Banks will provide these services from Sunday through Friday, including weekday holidays. Daily operating hours for each service will remain unchanged: Fedwire Funds Service will be open 22 hours per day, while NSS will be available for 21.5 hours per day.
The Federal Reserve Board stated, “Moving forward, the Board will monitor demand for a potential further expansion of operating hours to seven days per week. If the Board decides in the future to propose such an expansion, it will seek public comment in a new proposal.”
Fedwire Funds Service enables participating banks and credit unions to send and receive electronic funds transfers of up to $10 billion. The NSS facilitates settlement for private-sector clearing arrangements such as check clearinghouses, automated clearinghouse networks, and securities settlement systems.
This announcement does not affect other Federal Reserve services like Fedwire Securities Service or retail offerings including FedACH or FedNow Service.
More details can be found in the Federal Register notice: Federal Reserve Action to Expand Fedwire Funds Service and National Settlement Service Operating Hours (PDF).
