Use of instant payments continues to grow
Advantages for private individuals and companies with SEPA real-time transfers
For years, we have been communicating in seconds via e-mail or messenger services. But a standard SEPA transfer still takes up to one business day despite online banking. This means that a transfer made online by a bank customer on a Saturday, for example, is processed by the bank on Monday and may well not arrive until the Tuesday.
SEPA Instant Payments are a faster way to pay. The transfer is carried out in real time and the money arrives within 10 seconds – 365 days a year, 24 hours a day.
SEPA Instant Payments (real-time transfers) offered by many banks
The prerequisite for instant payments is that both the payer’s bank and the recipient’s bank offer the necessary services. Both allowing customers to make real-time transfers and being able to receive them are voluntary for banks. However, most banks already offer instant payment. If you’re not sure if your bank does this already, you will probably find the answer on its website. Or you can have a look at the European Payment Council (EPC) overview of participating banks.
The key advantages of instant payments are:
Use cases for private individuals
Real-time transfers can make our everyday lives much easier. Take for example the purchase of a used car. Until now the buyer often had to bring the entire sum in cash in order to be able to take the car with papers immediately. With SEPA instant payments withdrawing and carrying around large amounts of cash is no longer necessary. The buyer can transfer payment in real time. The seller can see that the money is in his account, and then hands over the car keys and papers to the buyer.
Another example is going to a restaurant with a group of friends. One person can pay the total, and all the others transfer their part of the bill to that person instantly. You can also do this using PayPal, but not everyone has a PayPal account. Almost everyone, on the other hand, has a current account from which transfers can be made online. According to Statista, only 1% of all adults in Germany do not have a bank account.
Use cases for companies
The ways in which companies use and profit from real-time transfers are very different, depending on the industry and individual company. In retail and e-commerce, instant payments reduce the time between ordering and payment to just a few seconds. In industries where cash payment is still common, e.g. in used car sales, cash can be replaced making payment easier and more secure. Seasonal and temporary employees can be paid immediately without using cash. And tax payments can be transferred at the last minute.
The most important advantages for companies through instant payments
Would you like to use Instant Payments with finAPI in your company? Then get in touch with us. With finAPI Webform 2.0, implementation is quick and easy, and you can benefit from all the advantages mentioned above in no time at all.
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