Branch (formerly Branch Messenger), a mobile-first technology providing schedule and financial flexibility for hourly employees, today announced the general availability of Pay, a suite of new features on the app to help hourly workers forecast and advance their pay. Previously only available to enterprises and select users from a 35,000-plus waitlist at companies such as Dunkin’, Taco Bell, and Target, Pay is now accessible to all app users across the United States.
Branch expands the app’s offerings to meet more of hourly shift workers’ needs by enabling them greater flexibility in both their work and pay schedules. Pay helps relieve financial stress by not only allowing users instant access to earnings, but also providing various tools and insights. Hourly workers now have a holistic solution to manage work in tandem with their personal finances, removing the constraints of the two-week paycheck cycle:
• Instant access to earnings: Real-time earnings technology allows qualified users to instantly advance up to $150 per day and up to $500 per pay period based on the hours they work;
• Wage tracker: Ability to forecast cash flow based on wages and scheduled shifts;
• Shift pick-up: Option to find and add more shifts to increase pay period earnings; and
• Overdraft check: Pay won’t withdraw repayment if it will cause users to overdraft.
“Opening Pay and instant access to earnings to all Branch users continues our mission of creating tools that empower the hourly employee and allow their work lives to meet the demands of their personal lives,” said Atif Siddiqi, Branch CEO. “Our initial users have embraced this feature, and we look forward to offering Pay to all of our organic users to better engage employees and scale staffing more efficiently.”
Initial Pay enrollees have already averaged approximately 5.5 transactions per month and more than 20 percent higher shift coverage rates compared to non-users. Unlike other lending apps, Pay offers a free option for its users to quickly obtain earned, but not yet collected wages, prior to their regularly scheduled payday. Branch has worked with New Jersey-based Cross River and financial technology platform Plaid to power payments and complete transactions.
Pay requires no integration with a company’s existing payroll system. After downloading the Branch app, users simply opt into Pay by connecting their work location, debit card, and bank account. Branch supports over 98 percent of banks and credit unions within the United States. Branch is available for iOS and Android users.