Signet Bank launches instant payments

Signet Bank has joined the European instant payment system – a real-time payments platform that allows participating payment institutions to effect transfers denominated in euros 24/7 (including holidays), within seconds.

Real-time transactions with immediate, traceable execution have become the norm in our everyday lives: taxi rides, food orders, subscribing for a TV channel or shopping online are all available to us in the blink of an eye and all we have to do is receive our purchase. It is only logical that financial services should adapt to contemporary expectations.

We are glad to be joining Swedbank, SEB and Citadele, which already provide quick payment service, and we can enable most payments for our clients in instant transfer mode. Technological development and better client service experiences are Signet Bank’s priorities this year, and we have just made another step in this direction.

Roberts Idelsons, CEO at Signet Bank

Instant payments are a new standard for transfers on a pan-European scale. Latvia was the first Eurozone state to introduce instant payments infrastructure, but we are not resting on our laurels. We have been working on further add-ons to innovative settlement infrastructure, including our recent creation of the Instant Link Register for quick, secure and convenient interbank transfers based solely on a beneficiary’ s mobile phone number. Latvijas Banka has also set up ZibLab++, an instant payments laboratory aiming to facilitate and coordinate the development of innovative interbank payments leveraging instant payment and instant link technology throughout the Baltics.

Latvijas Banka’s Innovative Payment Services Manager Harijs Ozols

According to European Payments Council data, the instant payment system already includes over 2200 participating institutions from 22 European countries. The Baltics have been leaders in adopting the technology so far, but instant payments are quickly becoming popular throughout Europe.