£1bn is processed in a single day through the Faster Payments Service as the scheme reaches new peak day volume

- The Faster Payments Service processes 5 million payments, to a value of £1 billion on 2 March
- Launched in May 2008, the service enables customers to make and receive immediate internet and phone payments, 24 hours a day

The Faster Payments Service has beaten its previous daily record, announced in December 2008, of processing nearly four million payments, to a value of nearly £730 million, Chaps Co confirms today (6 March 2009).

Of the 5 million payments processed on this new record day on the 2 March, over 4 million payments were standing orders, over three quarters of a million were immediate payments - made online or by phone - and the remaining were forward dated payments.

The main reason for this new peak is down to it being the end of the month when the vast majority of standing order payments are processed; another contributing factor is that more banks are allowing more of their customers to benefit from this new service.

The system has run extremely smoothly, since its launch in May 2008, it has processed over 125 million payments to a total value of over £46 billion. Volumes are predicted to continue rising: it is forecast that Faster Payments will help to push volumes of interbank online, phone and standing order payments from the 2007 figure of 472 million to 622 million in 2017.

ENDS

For further information contact the APACS Press Office, which works on behalf of CHAPS Co, on 020 7711 6316 or press@apacs.org.uk

Notes to Editors

CHAPSCo processes and settles systemically important and time-dependent payments through its two payment schemes. The CHAPS Sterling Scheme enables same-day bank-to-bank payments in sterling and has 15 members. The Faster Payments Scheme enables telephone and online banking payments, as well as standing orders, to be processed within hours and was launched on 27 May 2008. There are 13 members.