Payments
Primary RTGS systems have average $1.65m in operating costs
Majority of central banks increased payments system divisions budgets in the past year
Payments oversight is under-resourced for a third of central banks
Respondents identify shortage of human capital, capacity building and dated technology as concerns
Few non-banks have access to RTGS systems
Maximum number of institutions reported to have access to one RTGS system was 233
Most central banks have payment and settlement supervision mandates
Payment system laws contain oversight powers in two-thirds of jurisdictions
Payment ecosystems remain relatively unchanged over past year
Most central banks help price RTGS services and many do for credit transfers and direct debits
Central banks report having one to three RTGS contingency sites
Most central banks experienced a high-value payment system outage in the last year
Banknotes: April to June 2023
A round-up of news and salient issues that have affected central bankers in the past three months
ISO 20022 payments messaging adoption rate increases
Majority of central banks uphold plans to transition by 2025
More than 80% of central banks are investigating CBDC
Central banks feel negatively about retail digital currencies in their payment systems
South African central bank prepares for total power failure
Sarb working on resilience plans but warns only “some transactions” may continue
Most central banks regulate or operate instant payment systems
Bank accounts, phone numbers and QR codes are most common access tools for instant payments
Third-party risks are a first priority for central banks
Cyber and concentration risks crystallise co-operation between critical infrastructure providers
Most RTGS systems are more than three years old
Nearly 60% of central banks plan to upgrade their RTGS payment system in the next year
Most central banks use third-party payment providers
Montran, Swift, and CMA Small Systems come up repeatedly as third parties
Payment security must improve, Norges Bank warns
Norwegian central bank says it will decide on design of new settlement system by 2025
Canadian RTGS system improves payments efficiency, paper says
Researchers examined transition from a hybrid high-value payment system to RTGS
Venezuela may join Russian card network
Mir system suffered major setbacks last year after US warning
Central bankers cast doubt on utility of CBDC
“Element of Fomo” drives projects on even when purpose is unclear and resources lacking
Papua New Guinea phasing out cheques
Central bank will stop processing cheques from larger businesses from end-2023
São Tomé gets loan for RTGS upgrade
Island country lacks automated system
Singapore and Malaysia set up cross-border payments link
Travellers can use QR codes to pay for transactions in foreign stores
Fed details Custodia rejection decision
Decision says Wyoming firm has deficient management and risky business model
BIS to trial Asian instant payments link
Project Nexus aims to create standardised cross-border link for different countries’ systems
FedNow set to launch in July
Onboarding to instant payment system begins in April, followed by production validation