RTP Network Transaction Value Leaps to $55B in Q2 as Businesses Sign On

The RTP network set records in terms of both the number of transactions and the value of payments it enabled in the second quarter.

The instant payments system operated by The Clearing House allowed consumers and businesses to send 82 million transactions valued at $55 billion during the quarter, The Clearing House said in a Wednesday (July 10) press release.

The RTP network also set a single day record when it enabled $1 billion in instant payments on June 28, according to the release.

During the quarter, payment volume grew 7% and overall payment value jumped 30%, per the release.

The Clearing House attributed the leap in overall payment value to businesses and corporations increasing the number of high-value payments they sent on the system, leveraging instant payments for cash concentration.

“The increase in transaction value is due to broad adoption of the RTP network across a number of use cases, including account-to-account transfers, title insurance and mortgage closing payments, gig economy payouts, earned wage access and more,” Margaret Weichert, chief product officer at The Clearing House, said in the release.

“Banks and credit unions that have joined the RTP network are seeing how instant payments can grow deposits, while meeting member and customer expectations for instant payment availability, 24/7,” Weichert added.

The RTP network’s second-quarter results followed a quarter in which the instant payments system also set records. During the first quarter, it racked up what were then its highest ever totals with a volume of 76.4 million and a value of $42.3 billion.

The Clearing House said at the time that the network had seen growth in both transaction volume and value in 19 out of the previous 20 quarters, dating back to 2019.

PYMNTS Intelligence has found that real-time payments continue to advance globally as banks, FinTechs, corporates and governments pursue initiatives to accelerate payments for their citizens and customers.

Global real-time transactions are projected to increase 161% between 2024 and 2028, reaching $58 trillion by 2028, according to “The Real-Time Payments World Map,” a PYMNTS Intelligence and The Clearing House collaboration.

Instant payments present a solution to timing and cash flow challenges faced by businesses. For example, in the transportation industry, payments like those facilitated by the RTP network help small operators make payments at any time, ensuring they align perfectly with their cash flow needs, Cheryl Gurz, vice president, RTP product development at The Clearing House, told PYMNTS in an interview posted in June.

“They’re out on the road, it’s 10 p.m. on the west coast, and they have a payment due the next morning. And the east coast supplier, they can make that payment and within 30 seconds and it’s settled,” Gurz said. “Sothey don’t have to worry about timing, they don’t have to worry about banker’s hours.”