Real-time payments are gaining momentum in the United States, but research released Monday indicates the U.S. market remains a laggard. The total value of so-called instant payments will reach $18 trillion in 2025, but the U.S. share of that market will total just 8%, or $1.4 trillion, according to a forecast by Juniper Research.
The Basingstoke, United Kingdom-based firm defines an “instant payment” as one in which the transaction is complete within 10 seconds.
The primary movers behind real-time payments in the U.S. market are The Clearing House Payments Co. LLC, based in New York City and owned by the nation’s biggest banks, and the Federal Reserve. TCH’s Real Time Payments network has been operational since 2017, while the Fed, which links virtually every financial institution in the country, projects its FedNow service will come online in 2023 or, at the latest, 2024.