With 41 million real-time transactions a day, India leads the world: Report

Thanks to the pandemic, with 41 million transactions a day, the country has been the world leader in real-time financial transactions, more than double that of the previous year, according to an international survey.

India has doubled its daily real-time transactions to 41 million due to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the latest FIS survey, which is a leading provider of technology solutions for retailers, banks and capital markets companies worldwide.

According to a study released on Wednesday, six other countries have also seen their real-time payment transactions more than double year-over-year, while four have seen at least a two-fold rise in the volume of their transactions.

But in terms of growth rate, Bahrain tops the list with 657% growth, followed by a 488% clip in Ghana, a 309% rise in the Philippines, 214% in Australia, and 208% in Poland.

According to the survey, India 's growth was 213%, managing 41 million transactions a day.

India leads global real-time payments, handling 41 million real-time transactions every day, more than any other nation in the world, "the report says, adding that with the launch of comprehensive real-time rail business services, including IPO subscriptions, mandate management, and invoice-in-the-box, the country continues to innovate."

The highest number of real-time transactions per capita was recorded by South Korea, with 75 transactions processed annually. In the US, real-time payments are currently being introduced by over 130 financial institutions, a five-fold rise since September 2019.

The pan-European Sepa Credit Transfer Instant Payments Network, which brings cross-border and instant payments to 20 countries, has been joined by over half (56%) of all European payments service providers.

Since last year, Vietnam and Hungary have been introducing real-time payment networks, taking the total number of countries with such systems to 56.

According to FIS, the Request for Payment (R2P), cross-border payments and business-to - business corporate treasury payments are driving the global adoption of real-time payment networks. R2P systems give individuals, enterprises and governments a simple and versatile way to request a third-party payment.

In 24 countries, including Australia, Britain, China, India, and the US, FIS facilitates real-time payments worldwide and handles instant transactions.

Mr Raja Gopalakrishnan, the head of global real-time payments at FIS, said: "The current pandemic has highlighted the vital importance of quickly getting funds, whether for individuals or businesses."

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.