News

Study: Real-time Payment Systems: A Global Opportunity

January 6, 2014

As more consumers and businesses move to electronic payments, countries around the world are implementing — or considering implementing — real-time payment clearing systems that allow consumers, businesses, and FIs to send and receive payments nearly instantaneously. A new report, "Real-Time Payment Systems: A Global Opportunity," from Mercator Advisory Group explores the current state and future prospects of these systems. 

Real-time payment clearing systems are already in place in South Africa, Mexico, Nigeria, Poland and the U.K. Given the success of these systems, other countries will begin to seriously consider implementing similar systems in their own markets, making real-time clearing payment systems a truly global opportunity, according to the report.

Tristan Hugo-Webb, associate director for the international advisory service at Mercator Advisory Group and the primary author of the report, explained the rise of real-time payments:

The global payments landscape is changing. Consumers who once relied on cash as their primary payment instrument are increasingly adopting electronic payment methods like debit and credit cards, as well as alternatives like mobile payments.

Businesses, financial institutions, and other players in the international payments industry are not only adapting to these changing consumer trends but undergoing changes themselves. Businesses both large and small are looking for ways to cut costs and improve efficiencies, and financial institutions are constantly looking for the next technological advancement to bring to their customers.

Real-time payment systems are one of the primary means of addressing the changing payment landscape.

Among the key findings in the 22-page report:

• An overview of global real-time payment systems
• The implementation history of real-time payment systems around the world 
• A closer look at structure, performance, and recent developments of the Faster Payments Service in the United Kingdom 
• A review of the potential applications of real-time payment systems

One of eight exhibits in the report:

Read more about trends and statistics.