Real-Time Payments Market Expected to Reach $123.0 Billion by 2031

According to a new report published by Allied Market Research, titled, “Real-Time Payments Market By Component (Solution, Services), By Deployment Mode (On-Premises, Cloud), By Enterprise Size (Large Enterprises, Small And Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs)), By Industry Vertical (BFSI, IT And Telecommunications, Retail And E-Commerce, Government, Energy And Utilities, Others): Global Opportunity Analysis And Industry Forecast, 2022-2031". The real-time payments market size was valued at $13.8 billion in 2021, and is estimated to reach $123 billion by 2031, growing at a CAGR of 24.5% from 2022 to 2031.

The real-time payments market is witnessing significant trends and growth factors. The increasing demand for instant and seamless transactions, driven by the rise of e-commerce, mobile banking, and digital wallets, is propelling the adoption of real-time payment solutions. In addition, regulatory initiatives promoting faster payments and open banking are fostering innovation and competition in the market. Furthermore, the integration of real-time payment systems with emerging technologies like blockchain and AI is enhancing security, efficiency, and customer experiences. Moreover, the global push towards a cashless society and the expansion of real-time payment networks across regions are contributing to market growth. These factors collectively reflect a dynamic landscape for real-time payments, driving its expansion and transformation in the financial services industry. 

Furthermore, the global real-time payments industry is in its developing phase and exhibits high growth potential due to rise in demand for operational efficiency & transparency during transactions and surge in demand for customized digitalized payment options globally. For instance, according to a study conducted by Mastercard in 2020, 95% of South African consumers plan to use at least one emerging payment method, such as contactless, proximity, cryptocurrency, biometrics, or QR code, in the coming year. In addition, as several stores were closed to maintain social distance, retailers worldwide moved their businesses online and adopted the potential of rtp payments and other contactless transaction modes.

By industry vertical, the BFSI segment acquired major real-time payments market share. This is attributed to the fact that real time payment network offers digital solutions for customer-centric banking by providing secure solutions with flexible real-time payments models. It enables bulk payment by uploading the list of all payments to be made and automatically diverts to another payment option in case of payment failure. Furthermore, it checks the credit history to intelligently track and protect against defaulters and fraud. Therefore, these are some major key market trends for payment processing solutions in the BFSI sector.

Region-wise, North America dominated the market in 2021 and is expected to continue to dominate the real-time payments market during the forecast period. This is attributed to the rapid adoption of mobile wallets such as Apple Pay and Samsung Pay have contributed toward the growth of real-time payments in North America. In addition, rise in trend of contactless payment during the pandemic increased the adoption of real-time payments methods such as Near Field Communication (NFC) and QR codes. Furthermore, the convenience provided by real time payment credit, such as quick service and faster check-out experiences at cafes, drive-through & casual dining restaurants, as well as access to coupons, offers, and rewards in the payment experience, are major growth factors for the North American real-time payments market growth.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a significant increase in the demand for real-time payments market growth. This is attributed to increased familiarity with payment technology among consumers, and several governing bodies across the globe are taking initiatives to stop the spread of virus by initiating various policies. For instance, in the UK, the Health Minister has proposed launching a new application that would help the National Health Service (NHS) test and trace. In addition, this new launch aims to promote contact tracing of COVID-19 infected people and to establish contact between app-enabled smartphones within a certain radius. Thus, these factors promoted the growth of the real-time payments market trends during the pandemic situation.     

Key findings of the study

• By deployment mode, the on-premises segment led the highest real-time payments market share in terms of revenue in 2021.
• By enterprise size, the large enterprise segment led the highest real-time payments market share in terms of revenue in 2021.
• Region-wise, North America generated the highest revenue in 2021.  

The key players operating in the real-time payments market analysis include ACI Worldwide, Inc., Cognizant, FIS Inc., Financial Software & Systems Pvt. Ltd., Finastra, Fiserv, Inc., Mastercard, Inc., Microsoft Corporation, Mindgate Solutions Private Limited, Montran Corp., PayPal Holdings, Inc., TCS, Temenos AG, Visa Inc., Volante Technologies Inc., Sila, and Rapyd. These players have adopted various strategies to increase their market penetration and strengthen their position in the industry.