Time is money. A simple sentence said a thousand times, but it always retains relevance. The importance of transaction speeds in the upcoming year will matter even more as the industry pace will only quicken.
Users flock and migrate to simple, fast, and efficient solutions that provide maximum customer satisfaction. Companies should keep one ear on the ground for upcoming trends, like some mentioned below.
1. Client satisfaction
Users want their funds to be available always, and to minimize downtime. Payments, transfers, and transactions must flow seamlessly between any business and its clients. Waiting for any payouts or earnings builds frustration and diminishes brand value, as potential customers wish to enjoy unlimited mobility. Such transactions are moving towards becoming a baseline and a necessity in any business, and we can see good examples from Bitcoin gambling sites, which offer their players some of the fastest fund transfers currently available.
2. A2A payments
Account-to-account transactions and payments are the latest trends, following multiple variations on the topic, such as B2B, B2C, and others. Simply put, the more intermediaries there are, the slower the payment speed will be. A2A transfers are as direct as possible because they ignore credit card processors, payment transaction intermediates, and banks, allowing clients’ funds to flow unrestrictedly.
Such transfers between accounts are near instant, with lower transaction costs, and enjoy growing popularity. As banks adapt to offer their clients more convenience, the API technology behind the A2A payment transfers is quickly becoming a worldwide digital standard.
3. BAAS
Continuing on the previous topic, banking-as-a-service is quickly becoming popular, as the ability to adapt to your customer’s needs and requirements via API services becomes the norm. For a bank to stay competitive, its service portfolio must be rich, but one bank can only offer so much to its customers.
However, with application programming interfaces available to the general public, banks are moving towards becoming partners and channels for their customers rather than intermediaries and obstacles. Such a holistic solution offers customers a chance to create their own solutions, whereas banks will only act as a platform to process their requests.
4. Lower cost of payments
The more steps, intermediaries, and procedures exist in a payment supply chain, the higher the cost and slower the payment speeds. Global liquidity is already strained due to volatile credit markets, adding costs and rising inflations, and compliance controls are not doing anyone favors. Automatic procedures quicken the transaction pace and reduce costs and the chances of failed payments.
Our entire banking world is digital, where quality programs are what drive innovation in the field, reducing fraudulent actions and associated costs. Centralized payment hubs with automated and regulated payment systems remove unnecessary intermediates, allow for greater control, and thus reduce the overall payment costs.
Companies that move away from third-party solutions and keep all transactions “in-house”, are the ones who will see easier and faster flow of payments. By providing essential before and after payment services, these one-stop banks are the potential next step in payment speed evolution.