Instant payment

Instant payment (sometimes referred to as real-time payment or faster payment) is a method of electronic funds transfer, allowing for almost immediate transfer of money between bank accounts. This was in contrast to the previous transfer times of one to three business days that had been in place until the mid-2010s.^[1]

Since the mid-2010s many countries have implemented instant payment systems that speed up the transfer between bank accounts in response to customer demand for faster transactions.^[1]

The Euro Retail Payments Board (ERPB) in 2018 defined instant payments as:

Electronic retail payment solutions available 24/7/365 and resulting in the immediate or close-to-immediate interbank clearing of the transaction and crediting of the payee’s account with confirmation to the payer (within seconds of payment initiation).^[2]