NE-ACI-WRLDWDE/GLOBLDATA
Global real-time payments growth has reached sustainable levels with 266.2 billion real-time payments transactions recorded in 2023—a year-over-year (YoY) growth of 42.2%—according to the 2024 Prime Time for Real-Time report, published by ACI Worldwide (NASDAQ: ACIW), a global leader in mission-critical, real-time payments software, in partnership with GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240429624485/en/
While previous reports highlighted the economic benefits of real-time payments and consumer uptake around the world, this year’s report—now in its fifth edition—takes a deep dive into some of the world’s leading real-time payments markets, highlighting the factors that have enabled those countries to build successful end-to-end real-time payments ecosystems. The report also reveals that many of the newer market entrants around the globe are quickly catching up, with lawmakers and central banks around the world pushing for adoption, determined to reap the economic benefits of real-time payments and drive financial inclusion for their citizens.
Key Findings at a Glance
- Globally, 575.1 billion real-time transactions are forecast by 2028, representing a 2023-2028 compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 16.7%. By 2028, real-time payments are expected to account for 27.1% of all electronic payments globally.
- India continues to dominate the global real-time payments market, with 129.3 billion transactions in 2023 – more than the rest of the world’s top 10 real-time payments markets combined. Of all electronic payments made in India, 84% are now real-time.
- Brazil saw a remarkable YoY growth of 77.9% in 2023, with 37.4 billion real-time payments transactions. Brazil is the undisputed real-time payments leader in Latin America, responsible for 75% of all transactions in the region. Other Latin American countries are pushing ahead with real-time payments modernization initiatives, looking to replicate Brazil’s success. Peru and Colombia are predicted to have the highest 2023-2028 CAGRs in the region, with 51.2% and 42.6%, respectively.
- Asia Pacific (APAC) is the largest real-time payments market, with 185.8 billion transactions in 2023, representing 24.0% of all electronic payments in the region. With four of the top five real-time payments markets by volume, the APAC region is projected to see over 351.5 billion real-time transactions by 2028, a 2023-2028 CAGR of 13.6%.
- The Middle East is the fastest-growing real-time payments market globally. Oman, Kuwait and Qatar all launched schemes in 2023, joining more established regional players like Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and UAE. The 2023-2028 CAGR for the region is 28.8% – transactions are expected to rise from 855 million to 3.0 billion by 2028.
- The European Union (EU) Instant Payments Regulation, passed in February 2024, is expected to drive instant payments volume across the Single Euro Payments Area, including the 27 EU member states. By 2028, instant payments are forecast to account for 13% of all electronic payments in Europe, up from 8% in 2023.
- North America is a major growth market to watch—primarily due to the launch of the FedNow service in the U.S. in 2023—with a projected 2023-2028 CAGR of 27.1%.
- Nigeria is the undisputed real-time payments leader in Africa, another major growth market. The country recorded 7.9 billion transactions in 2023; real-time payments had an impressive 82.1% share of all electronic payments in 2023.
Market Deep-Dives: Lessons from the Most Successful Real-Time Payments Markets
For the first time, this year’s report takes a deep dive into five of the most successful real-time payments markets worldwide—India, Brazil, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Netherlands—analyzing the driving factors and use cases that have allowed those countries to develop thriving real-time payment ecosystems with the power to transform businesses and improve consumers’ lives.
- The Power of Collaboration: Whether by government mandate or industry consensus, real-time payments systems thrive through active collaboration. Financial institutions, payment service providers, central banks and government institutions, merchants and third-party stakeholders must work together to build and operate successful real-time payments ecosystems.
- Open and Inclusive Payments Ecosystems: The most successful real-time payments markets are fostering fintech-rich environments. The research shows that fintechs and smaller banks play an increasingly significant role in the real-time payment ecosystems of the world’s leading markets. Larger banks will need to reevaluate strategies and forge new partnerships with fintechs to remain competitive in the rapidly growing real-time payments markets across the world.
- Strong Incentives for Merchants: Merchant adoption and uptake are crucial for real-time payments growth. The Indian government, for example, removed merchant discount rates and issued all merchants with QR codes for UPI acceptance, actively incentivizing merchants of all sizes to accept UPI payments.
- Constant Flow of New, User-Friendly Use Cases: Real-time payments thrive in countries where innovative use cases have found mass adoption by consumers or businesses. Whether utility or tax bills, transport tickets or road tolls, subscription payments, or the weekly grocery shop, consumers in the most successful markets are now paying in real time.
- Cross-Border Real-Time Payments Links are the next Big Frontier: Efforts to extend real-time to cross-border payments are finally paying off, and Asian countries are leading the way. Payments using India’s popular UPI scheme can now be made in Malaysia, Indonesia, UAE and France, and users of Malaysia’s DuitNow can now make QR code real-time payments from Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand and China.
- Real-time payments fraud: Generative AI is changing the nature and scale of fraud attacks, but the industry is rising to the challenge. Consumer rights initiatives, education programs and government interventions—combined with new AI-based anti-fraud technology and methods—are starting to make an impact.
“This year’s report highlights the key success factors that have allowed some countries to forge ahead with real-time payments modernization and reap enormous benefits for consumers and businesses,” said Craig Ramsey, global head of real-time payments, ACI Worldwide. “Modern real-time payments require collaboration, and they encourage a new generation of market entrants for banks to either compete or cooperate with – often both. The world’s most successful real-time payments schemes, notably those in India and Brazil, also feature use cases that have proved popular beyond imagination.”
“Real-time payments—and especially cross-border payments—are the future. They remove payments friction, provide greater liquidity in the financial system, and ultimately drive economic growth and financial inclusion,” said Debbie Guerra, chief product officer, ACI Worldwide. “Banks should consider whether they are truly maximizing the real-time rails in their market, and whether limiting their commitment to the minimum also means limiting their potential share of the future of payments.”
Note to editors: All key facts and figures at a glance can be found in our Prime Time for Real-Time 2024 Infographic.
About ACI Worldwide
ACI Worldwide is a global leader in mission-critical, real-time payments software. Our proven, secure and scalable software solutions enable leading corporations, fintechs and financial disruptors to process and manage digital payments, power omni-commerce payments, present and process bill payments, and manage fraud and risk. We combine our global footprint with a local presence to drive the real-time digital transformation of payments and commerce.
© Copyright ACI Worldwide, Inc. 2024
ACI, ACI Worldwide, ACI Payments, Inc., ACI Pay, Speedpay and all ACI product/solution names are trademarks or registered trademarks of ACI Worldwide, Inc., or one of its subsidiaries, in the United States, other countries or both. Other parties’ trademarks referenced are the property of their respective owners.
To view this piece of content from cts.businesswire.com, please give your consent at the top of this page.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240429624485/en/
About Business Wire
Subscribe to releases from Business Wire
Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Latest releases from Business Wire
ICD 2025: New data demonstrate Nemluvio®’s (nemolizumab) favorable safety profile and sustained and clinically meaningful improvements in symptoms of prurigo nodularis up to two years18.6.2025 07:00:00 CEST | Press release
An interim analysis of the OLYMPIA long-term extension study to be presented as a late-breaking abstract at the XIV International Congress of Dermatology (ICD) found that Nemluvio was well tolerated and associated with sustained and clinically meaningful improvements in the key signs and symptoms of prurigo nodularis, including both skin lesions and itch, up to two years1 Results build on data from OLYMPIA – the largest completed pivotal clinical program in prurigo nodularis and the only one assessing long-term safety and efficacy in prurigo nodularis1-3 This follows the presentation of data from the ARCADIA long-term extension study at the Revolutionizing Atopic Dermatitis (RAD) Conference earlier this month, which showed Nemluvio is well tolerated with sustained and increased improvements in efficacy outcomes in atopic dermatitis patients up to two years4 Galderma (SIX: GALD) today announced data from a new interim analysis of a study investigating the long-term safety and efficacy o
LabPMM® Receives New York State Approval for the NPM1 MRD Assay - Informing Therapy and Accelerating Targeted Trials18.6.2025 06:30:00 CEST | Press release
Invivoscribe is happy to announce that its wholly owned subsidiary, the Laboratory for Personalized Molecular Medicine® (LabPMM) has received approval from New York State (NYS) for the NPM1 MRD Assay. This approval comes just two months after gaining NYS approval for our FLT3 ITD MRD Assay. Together these tests represent a critical tool for patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), clinicians and pharmaceutical companies. This new approval underscores Invivoscribe’s ongoing commitment to providing the most accurate, standardized measurable residual disease (MRD) testing solutions worldwide. The NPM1 MRD Assay is a pivotal development in the fight against AML, offering an ultra-sensitive DNA sequencing method to accurately measure trace levels of residual leukemia cells in patients with the NPM1 mutation variants. NPM1 mutations are considered an ideal target for MRD assessment because they are present in ~30% of adult AML cases,1 stable over time,2 and, if present in blood at allele
DNP to Take Controlling-Stake in Laxton18.6.2025 03:30:00 CEST | Press release
Maximizing synergies to accelerate the global expansion of biometric info-driven government authentication and security business Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd. (DNP, TOKYO: 7912) entered into a share transfer agreement on June 17, 2025 to acquire Cayman Islands-headquartered Rubicon SEZC. Rubicon (a holding company of “Laxton” group) is a global Identity Systems Integrator that provides ID solutions for governments, primarily in developing nations, to register and authenticate personal information. DNP plans to acquire 75% of Rubicon's shares in July and complete the procedures to make the company a Group company. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250613922077/en/ Products of Laxton DNP will maximize synergies with Laxton in ID cards and card printers. By expanding to government-related business in Africa, Asia, South America, and other regions, we will further grow our authentication and security business, contr
DNP: Operational Launch of 2,500 mm-Width Coating Line to Enhance Production Capacity by 15%18.6.2025 03:20:00 CEST | Press release
- To accommodate large-scale TVs and high-end model demands - Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd. (DNP) is pleased to announce the September operational launch of a coating device compatible with 2,500 mm-width high functional optical film at our Mihara Plant in Hiroshima Prefecture. The operational launch of the second wide coating device comes in response to market and consumer needs, and will boost production capacity by more than 15% on an area basis. With the increased capacity, DNP will accommodate the demand for high functional optical film for 65-inch large-screen TVs, with horizontal and vertical dimensions of 1,436.4 mm x 809.0 mm, which are expected to increase at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of approximately 6% between 2025 and 20301 on an area basis. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250613720341/en/ Image of Mihara Plant [Features] Facilitates the efficient manufacture, or imposition, of high fun
Alipay Enables In-Store Payment Functionality in China for AR Glasses in Collaboration with Rokid to Build Immersive Commerce18.6.2025 02:27:00 CEST | Press release
Over 250,000 units of Rokid Glasses have already been ordered, integrated with Alipay’s digital payment technology for AR glasses.The integration of payments into AR glasses supports a future of seamless, intuitive commerce—enabling instant, gesture-based transactions, immersive product discovery, and new ways for businesses to engage customers. Rokid, a pioneer in augmented reality (AR), today launched Rokid Glasses, its latest AR device. In China, the product supports in-store payments facilitated by Alipay’s digital payment technology and multidimensional risk control solution for AR glasses, providing a seamless and secure payment experience. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250617845457/en/ Rokid partners with Alipay to launch China’s first AR glasses with in-store payment capabilities. According to Rokid, the product will begin rolling out to users starting in June 2025, with over 250,000 units already or
In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.
Visit our pressroom