Faster Payments Service volumes reach new peak

Six months after go-live date nearly four million internet, phone and standing order payments processed in a single day

APACS, the UK payments association, has today (30 December 2008) provided an update on the new Faster Payments Service.  Introduced at the end of May this year, the new system processed 3,907,719 payments on its latest peak day, on 1 December 2008*.

During the first six months of operation, the service processed over 63 million payments, to a value of over £26 billion.

Around two-thirds of phone and internet payments are now processed through the Faster Payments Service, although still less than half of all standing order payments.  More than 40 per cent of all credit card accounts are now payable through the Service with three major credit card companies offering the facility for customers to pay their bill, ensuring that the money reaches the credit card account much quicker than previously.  Other credit card companies are undertaking the technical work they need to offer this service to their customers too.

Since the launch banks have been gradually rolling out the new service to customers so volumes and values of payments have been increasing, with the highest peak to date on 1 December, when almost 4 million payments were made on one day.

David McFarlane, CHAPS Company Manager said: “Since day one, our new central infrastructure has worked all day and every day processing internet and phone payments with complete reliability. We hope that 2009 will be the year that the Faster Payments Service is made available for even more internet, phone and standing order payments so more and more customers can benefit from the new service in more situations.”

* peak day volumes are likely to occur at the start of every month as this is when the vast majority of customer standing order payments are processed.   

ENDS

For further information contact:

T: 020 7711 6340 E: press@apacs.org.uk

APACS is the trade body that gives banks, building societies and card issuers a forum where they can work together on non-competitive issues. We help manage the way that businesses and individuals in the UK move their money around - this covers cash, credit and debit cards, cheques and automated payments such as Direct Debits, salary payments and the new Faster Payments Service launched on 27th May for online/phone banking transactions and standing orders. We lead the fight against banking fraud and twice a year we publish figures on payment industry fraud losses.

CHAPS Clearing Company manages same-day electronic payment schemes; including CHAPS Sterling and Faster Payments. The thirteen founding members of the Faster Payments Scheme are: Abbey, Alliance & Leicester, Barclays, Citi, Clydesdale and Yorkshire Banks (National Australia Group), Co-operative Bank, HBOS, HSBC, Lloyds TSB, Nationwide Building Society, Northern Bank (Danske Bank), Northern Rock, Royal Bank of Scotland Group (including NatWest and Ulster Bank).  VocaLink, a separate service company, is providing the infrastructure for the Faster Payments Service.

There is a maximum limit placed on the value of each payment sent through the Faster Payments Service, with the maximum value for internet and phone payments set at £10,000 and standing orders to £100,000.  During the rollout some banks may adopt lower limits.