Managing Automated CFTPay Debt and Settlement Synchronization

Target Audience & Permissions: This article is for Customer Service users and admins who hold Manage Integrations and View/Edit Debt/Tradeline permissions.
 

This article describes the automated synchronization of debt records, settlement offers, and transaction data between the FORTH CRM and CFTPay. It is organized into the following sections:

• Overview
• Prerequisites
• How to Access
• How it Works
• Troubleshooting / FAQ
• Assistance

Overview

Disconnected financial records happen when users must manually update different platforms. This automated synchronization fixes that problem by linking debt details, settlement offers, and transaction logs between FORTH and CFTPay.

Prerequisites

To use this feature, you must have the following:

• The Customer Service user role enabled.
• Manage Integrations user permissions.
• View/Edit Debt/Tradeline record user permissions.
• Standard user permissions to view and manage the Settlements and Debts tabs.
• An active CFTPay integration enabled for your FORTH account.
• Matching client identifiers in both systems.

How to Access

1. Log in to the FORTH CRM.
2. Navigate to Contacts > [Client Name] > Settlements to view synchronized settlement offers.
3. Navigate to Contacts > [Client Name] > Debts and click the Edit icon (pencil on paper) to view specific debt details.
   
4. Navigate to Contacts > [Client Name] > Audit Log to review the history of automated updates.
   
5. Navigate to Enrollments > Transactions to view linked financial records on the All Transactions page.

How it Works

1. Automated Background Schedules: The system runs a data sync on the schedule in the table below. It checks for updates in both the FORTH and CFT platforms and processes information automatically.

   Sync Timing	Goal	Data Impact
   Morning Sync	Captures overnight processing and early-morning updates.	Updates dashboards for the start of the business day.
   Afternoon Sync	Reflects settlements and payments processed during the first half of the day.	Ensures midday reporting is accurate for team reviews.
   After-Hours Sync	Pulls all remaining daily activity after banking cut-offs.	Finalizes the daily ledger for accurate next-day forecasting.

2. The 90-Day "Safety Net": Upon initial deployment, the FORTH CRM automatically scans the last 90 days of CFT activity. Any missing offers or payments are backfilled into the FORTH CRM immediately. Existing records are skipped to prevent duplication.
3. Timestamp Matching: The system compares the Last Updated timestamps. If you update a record in the FORTH CRM, the system pushes the data to CFTPay. If CFTPay receives a creditor update, the system pulls that data into the FORTH CRM.
4. Field Synchronization: The sync automatically updates fields including Enrolled Amount, Account Number, Fee %, Creditor Reference, Original Creditor, and Status & Reason. It checks both primary and secondary account holders to keep joint debts updated.
   
5. Status Reason Notes: The system pulls specific status reasons (such as 'VERIFIED') from CFTPay and adds them directly to the debt notes in the FORTH CRM.
6. Settlement Matching and Creation: The system matches unique identifiers to find the correct client. If it finds an active or completed settlement in CFTPay that does not exist in FORTH, it automatically creates the settlement record only for settled debts missing from Forth, never for unsettled debts.

7. Financial Tracking: The system imports all related financial transactions to the client ledger. This includes Settlement Payments in the Transaction History and Earned Performance Fees (EPFs) in the Earned Performance Fee Control section.

   Transaction Type	CRM Location	Business Value
   Settlement Payments (S1, S2, etc.)	Transaction History / Settlements Tab	Accurate tracking of creditor payouts and client balance.
   Earned Performance Fees (EPF)	Transaction History / EPF Control	Real-time revenue reporting and fee reconciliation.

8. Visual Identification: The system tags imported records with a CFT Originated label in your settlements list. These offers trigger all internal workflows and automations just like native settlements.
9. Continuous Transaction Updates: A background sync constantly updates transaction statuses, and critical details like dollar amounts.
10. Real-Time Sync: There is a continuous sync with CFT that updates all transaction details (excluding "past open" transactions) in the FORTH CRM, beyond just statuses. Opening a client’s Enrollment Details page triggers an immediate status sync for all transactions.

IMPORTANT: The sync no longer deletes CRM records when they're missing from CFT API responses!
IMPORTANT 2: CFT "Archived" status is not interpreted as "Deleted" in the FORTH CRM.

11. Historical Record Backfill: A one-time historical sync automatically pulls any missing offers, payments, or EPFs created since August 30, 2025.

[INSERT SCREENSHOT: The Settlements tab showing a record with the "CFT Originated" tag clearly visible.]

Completed Offer Behavior and Reporting

When a synced offer reaches a "Completed" or "Settled" status (e.g., the client paid in full), the system treats it exactly like a native CRM settlement.

• The offer moves to the Settled Debts section of the client’s dashboard and is included in all "Settled Debts" reports and analytics.
• Any triggers you have set up, such as sending a "Congratulations" email or moving the client to a "Graduated" status, will fire.

Monitor and Verify

However, you can verify and monitor the synced data through the following paths within the FORTH CRM:

NOTE: CRM-only records are retained and flagged for manual audit!

1. Log in to your FORTH CRM account and click the Contacts tab.
2. Search for and select a client who has active settlements processed through CFTPay, by clicking their name or the green right-facing arrow icon to open the Client Dashboard.
3. Click the Settlements tab and Observe the list of settlements.
4. To view synchronized financial records, click the Enrollments tab and select Transactions from the navigation bar.
5. Use the "Search" or "Filter" options on the All Transactions page to find payments linked to these settlements.

Troubleshooting / FAQ

• Where did the option to "Delete" a CFT transactions go?
  Users are now required to use "Cancel Transaction" instead of "Delete" for CFT transactions.
• Why did the sync fail to update a specific settlement?
  If a debt is already marked as completed or active (Settled) in the FORTH CRM, the system will not overwrite it with a CFT version. This "no-overwrite" rule protects your manual adjustments.
• Why did my client's status change to Pending Verification?
  Updates to core debt identifiers (like account numbers or creditor details) trigger a re-verification process in CFTPay. This temporarily shifts the client to a Pending Verification status while the data is confirmed.
• Why did the sync stop updating a completed debt?
  Once a transaction or debt reaches a final state like COMPLETED, FAILED, or CANCELLED, the system stops checking for updates to maintain historical record stability.
• Why was the Current Amount not updated during a sync?
  The sync reconciles the Original Amount to match CFTPay data. It does not update the Current Amount because ongoing payment applications manage that value inside the CRM environment.
• How do I verify the automated changes?
  Review the System Logs or the contact's Audit Log. Each entry contains a timestamp, the action performed, the "CFT" source identifier, unique record IDs, and error or skip notes.

Assistance

For further assistance, reach out to support@setforth.com.

Article Revision History

📸 Staging Screenshot Shot List

• [ ] Shot 1: Settlements tab showing a record with the CFT Originated tag clearly visible.
• [ ] Shot 2: Debts nested tab highlighting the Edit icon and updated Status & Reason field.
• [ ] Shot 4: Enrollments > Transactions page displaying a synchronized settlement payment.
• [ ] Shot 5: System Logs interface showing an automated "CFT" entry with timestamp and record ID.

Metadata

• CFTPay sync
• Automated settlement linking
• CFT Originated tag
• Debt synchronization
• Earned Performance Fees
• FORTH CRM integration
• Transaction history sync