INDUSTRY FIELD GUIDE
Payment clearing and return records for AI evaluation
An ACH return and a notification that corrects account information have different effects.
NAICS 522320 · Financial Transactions Processing, Reserve, and Clearinghouse Activities
An ACH return and a notification that corrects account information have different effects. Federal Reserve Financial Services publishes guidance on derived returns and notifications of change. A processor can create a simulation that tests whether a model links both kinds of event to their originating records. Federal Reserve ACH returns and notifications FAQ
Make up two original payments with the same amount. Give one a linked return record, and the other a separate field-correction notice. Include an unrelated record with a matching last digit. Ask the assistant which original event each record changes and which effects are documented. Use harmless aliases and omit live payment fields. The evaluation should flag uncertain matches for review.
Use no real payment references, bank coordinates, account numbers, credentials, exception rules, or customer information. A processor and its participating organizations may control different evidence.
Describe a clearing event sample
Original Fiund exercise
A field-correction notice does not have the same effect as a return
An offline clearing fixture uses dummy payment aliases and arbitrary practice units. No bank coordinates, usable payment reference or operational exception rule appears.
| Record | Source | What it records |
|---|---|---|
| AC1 | Original events | Payment P-A=25 units and payment P-B=25 units. Each has a distinct inert source reference. |
| AC2 | Linked follow-ups | Return R-A explicitly targets P-A. Field-correction notice N-B explicitly targets P-B and changes a dummy label only; no return for P-B supplied. |
| AC3 | Unmatched note | Event U ends in the same digit as P-A, amount 25, but carries no full origin reference or event-type confirmation. |
Question for the model
Which original payment has a documented return, which has only a label correction, and can U be matched by amount and last digit?
Show the reference answer and checks
AC2 links R-A to P-A as a return. It links N-B to P-B as a dummy label correction, without documenting a P-B return. AC3's amount and last digit do not establish a complete origin match or event type, so U stays unresolved. Preserve each follow-up's stated effect and source relationship instead of treating all later messages as financial reversals or inferring a new payment status.
- Classifying a field-correction notice as a returned payment.
- Matching an exception by amount and a partial reference instead of a documented origin link.
Fields to preserve
- Original payment alias
- Defines the target event.
- Follow-up type and origin reference
- Distinguishes return from field correction.
- Changed field and unmatched status
- Records the narrow supported effect.
Test another case
Add a later explicit P-B return with its own event ID. Require it to be reported as separate evidence rather than changing N-B's original type.
Use inert fictional records. Exclude real references, account details, credentials and controls; the task initiates no transfer or payment action.
Discuss a contribution
Describe the sources you control, the task they could support and what has already been checked. Use the existing-data assessment for an archive or the collection brief for a new recording project. The contributor agreement defines Fiund’s licensing authority and compensation. A guide or fictional exercise does not establish an accepted collection or a sale.