BoE urges banks to use payments systems directly

The Bank of England (BoE) urged more direct participation in the UK's high-value payment system in its payment systems oversight report for 2012, released today.

While welcoming growing membership in the system, the report condemns the "relatively high" tiering in the UK's wholesale payment systems. Tiering is the term given to the reliance of some banks – indirect participants – on the services of other, settlement banks, to access a payment system.

Indirect participants are responsible for 45%