- Workshops
Our curriculum of in-person payment workshops - held at convenient locations within our service area - typically cover key industry topics like:

• ACH Audit & Compliance
• ACH Exception Item Processing: An In-Depth Study
• ACH Fundamentals
• ACH Origination: Growing While Managing Risk
• ACH Risk Workshop
• What's New in Payments: ACH Rules Implementation
• Advanced ACH Rules Review & AAP Review Course
• Bits-N-Bytes
• Customer Service & ACH: Fundamentals for Branch Personnel
• E-Checks: The Rules and Regs of Conversion vs.Truncation
• Payment System Fraud & Managing the Risks
• RDFI Responsibilities & Compliance
• Treasury Day - How to be a "Survivor" Processing Government ACH Payments
• Wire Transfer Basics

Workshop are available as full- or half-day sessions taught by Southern Financial Exchange's Accredited ACH Professional staff and other industry recognized experts. Member contacts will receive workshop brochures approximately four to six weeks prior to each workshop.

- Teleconferences
Teleseminars or teleconferences are a convenient and cost-effective way to learn! No travel is required, and one registration fee covers as many people as you want on a single telephone line. SFE is pleased to be able to offer our members access to over 50 sessions per year on a variety of topics in conjunction with the other Regional Payments Associations and NACHA. Each session typically lasts 90 minutes to 2 hours and necessary course materials are made available prior to the teleseminar. Check out the complete course listing in our educational calendar.

- Web Conferences
Webinars or web conferences are another convenient and cost-effective way to learn! Once again, no travel is required, and one registration fee covers as many people as you want on a single telephone line. Webinars provide the additional benefit of an on-screen graphical presentation. SFE is pleased to offer our members access to numerous sessions on a variety of topics. Each session typically lasts 90 minutes to 2 hours and necessary course materials are made available either during the webinar or prior to. Check out the complete course listing in our educational calendar.

- Education On Demand
Education On Demand is a pre-recorded webinar training session featuring a live instructor. The webcast has been digitally enhanced to make it available over the Internet. This service allows attendees to participate in archived seminars that can be accessed at your convenience. Attendees will be able to see the instructor on-screen, as well as view the material being presented! Once again, no travel is required, and one registration fee covers as many people required by your training needs. Session typically last 90 minutes. Check out the complete course listing in our educational calendar.

- In-House Training and Consulting Services
What if Southern Financial Exchange's regularly-scheduled workshops do not fit your organization's schedule, or do not cover a topic your staff needs? Do you have a specific operational issue that you could really benefit from an expert's experience and guidance? Southern Financial Exchange's AAP certified staff can provide customized in-house training and consulting services or address your organization's specific needs.

A sample of the topics we can cover includes, but is certainly not limited to, the following:

• Considering ACH Origination? A close look from A to Z
• Advanced ACH Origination Issues: Implementing POP, TEL ARC, RCK
• Operations Risk Management: Identifying potential problems
• ACH 101 and Exception Item Processing
• AAP Certification Review

Contact the Southern Financial Exchange office to discuss your specific areas of need and to get pricing information. We will be glad to craft a solution from a single half-day session to a multi-day consulting engagement.

- Professional Certification
The Accredited ACH Professional (AAP) certification is awarded annually by NACHA and is administered locally by Southern Financial Exchange in our service area. Candidates for the certification examination, which is given each October, must register directly with NACHA. The registration fee includes a study guide. The pass rate for the exam has historically been about 50% nationwide, indicating the complexity and depth of the information covered. It is recommended that an eight-to ten-month study plan be considered to include appropriate Southern Financial Exchange educational opportunities and supplemental publications. SFE conducts review courses in multiple locations prior to the exam to help guide your preparedness.

- NEW! ACH Risk Assessment Service
Under NACHA's new "ACH Risk Management and Assessment" rule, each financial institution will be required to 1) perform a risk assessment of their ACH activities, and 2) implement risk management programs in accordance with "the requirements of their regulators." Additionally, financial institutions that originate ACH transactions will be required to make several modifications to any new or renewed agreements with originators or third party senders, and to employ a number of new risk management practices with those parties. The New Rule became effective June 18, 2010 and you should expect verification of compliance as part of your next ACH Audit and Regulatory Examination.

SFE's Risk Assessment Service includes:

• Thorough assessment of ACH activities & risk management program
• Formal Written Report including Risk Rating Matrix
• Onsite review period (minimum of 1 full day)
• ACH Volume report for 12 months following the assessment
• Pre-Assessment Worksheet & Checklist
• Review of originator agreements to ensure compliance with new requirements
• Risk Assessment Certification form
• Exit interview

- NEW! Remote Deposit Capture Risk Assessment Service
Does your financial institution offer Remote Deposit Capture? Have you read the FFIEC Guidance on Remote Deposit Capture? In order to analyze your RDC compliance and risk management procedures take advantage of SFE's RDC Audit Services.

SFE's RDC Audit Service includes:

• Pre-audit checklist
• Review of compliance with FFIEC Guidance
• Review of operating procedures and internal controls
• Review of balancing and reconciliation functions
• Written RDC Audit Management Report and recommendations for improvement at the conclusion of the audit
• RDC Risk Assessment Certification form
• Exit interview

- ACH Rules Compliance Audit
NACHA requires that all participating Depository Financial Institutions and third-party service providers that provide ACH services conduct an Annual ACH Audit to be performed by December 1 of each year (ACH Rules, Appendix Eight, Section 8.1, OR 144).

Who better to conduct your annual ACH audit than your resource for electronic payments information and training? An SFE Accredited ACH Professional (AAP) can conduct your annual ACH audit and examine each facet of your ACH operation.

SFE's Audit Service includes:

• Pre-audit checklist
• Performance of audit requirements as required by Appendix Eight of the ACH Rules
• Review of operating procedures and internal controls
• Review of balancing and reconciliation functions
• Written ACH Audit Management Report with findings and recommendations for improvement at the conclusion of the audit
• Audit Certification form (to present if audited by NACHA)
• Exit interview

Schedule any 2 of the above Risk Assessment, Audit and Compliance services and receive 10% off the final bill. Schedule Your ACH Risk Assessment with your ACH Audit & RDC Assessment and save up to 15% off the final bill. These services do not need to be scheduled during the same timeframe but we will try to schedule them around the same timeframe if you prefer.

If you would like more information or to schedule one or more of these services, please contact SFE.

- Compliance Support
Let's face it – the ACH Rules book is not light reading, and sometimes you just can't find what you are looking for in there, or you're not sure you understand what you are reading. That is where Southern Financial Exchange can help. We have a toll-free number so that you can reach an Accredited ACH Professional to help you with those NACHA rules interpretation questions, or questions about Regulation E, the Treasury Green Book, and other regulations. When in doubt – don't guess. Call Southern Financial Exchange for a quick answer.

- E-mail Notifications
As the payments industry continues to evolve, SFE will continue to provide timely information needed for your institution to meet the challenges of electronic commerce.

NOW, you can sign up for our e-mail subscription service on our web site. Topics are available for both members and non-members including: all SFE topics, SFE's newsletter, coming educational events, risk management, ACH operations, new ACH products and services, electronic payments marketing, and treasury management. With your participation, you will get critical news informing you of topics of immediate and critical concern to the financial community.

Look for this box on our web site and sign up today!