An eCheck transaction involves four essential steps: 1. The payee, the entity that receives the payment, must give the authorization to accept payment electronically. Obtaining authorization relies on the payer, the entity submitting the payment. Permission can be granted in writing (such as filling out an online form on a supplier portal) or issued verbally (such as a confirmation over the phone). 2. Next, the payee’s payment transaction information—the bank routing number, the payee’s bank account number, the type of account, and the transaction amount—is submitted through an online payment processing service, also sometimes referred as a payment processor. This service transmits the transaction data.  An online payment gateway is an entity that facilitates the payment processing service, serving as a middleman between the payer and the payee’s bank. If there are additional fields required for that country (IBAN, SWIFT, etc.), that information must also be part of the payment details collected from the payee. Every country has its own unique requirements. 3. The drafting bank then communicates with the bank in the other country with the transfer details. Unlike wire transfers, these transactions are often run in bulk to minimize the need for manual intervention. 4. The payment processor communicates with the payer and the payee during the eCheck transfer, such as sending a notification to the payee that the funds are on their way. Depending on the locale, the local bank, and when the batch run was executed, it can take three to ten business days for funds to land.