Payments
Payments Benchmarks 2023 report – moving money in shifting conditions
Data reveals differences in CBDC paths, RTGS systems, instant payment plans and budgets
Central banks are experimenting with news forms of payment, notably digital currencies, but at the time many are working hard to overhaul their existing technology and manage risks. The Payments Benchmarks 2023 present original data on how central banks are approaching digital currencies, ISO 20022 messaging standards, high-value payments systems, and more.
Charts
Fee systems
Worldwide, the most common model is for payment systems to charge variable fees, an approach that is particularly common in emerging market economies. In some cases, central banks charge based on the volume of payment requests. Some charge a flat annual fee and then variable charges per transaction.
Two central banks that responded to the benchmark said they do not charge any fees for use of the real-time gross settlement system.
For the full breakdown, use the benchmarking service’s interactive charts to explore the data.
Payments data
View the full breakdown of responses to the Payments Benchmarks.
Previous years
Payments 2023
Payments 2022
Payments 2021
Payments Benchmarks 2023 – executive summary
Payments are undergoing rapid technological change, creating opportunities – and challenges
Payments Benchmarks 2023 report – moving money in shifting conditions
Data reveals differences in CBDC paths, RTGS systems, instant payment plans and budgets
RTGS systems are used free of charge in one-tenth of jurisdictions
RTGS systems are used free of charge in one-tenth of jurisdictions
Median RTGS system processes nearly $100bn annually
Median value of payments rose by $15bn from the previous benchmark
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
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