World Bank Technical Paper No. 260. An efficient payment system is a necessary precondition for business development. This study outlines the basic operating principles of a payment system and reviews its benefits, costs, risks, and problems. It examines in detail the systems currently in place in the developed economies of Europe and the United States and draws from the analyses to support recommendations for restructuring those systems in developing countries. The study reviews the various types of payment practices that exist in mature systems including cash, check, GIRO, debit and credit card, direct debit, and large-value wire transfers. A range of short- and long-term improvements in payment systems are recommended for developing countries. There is a special focus on the Russian payment system and the problems it faces in transition from a centrally planned to an market economy.
Some retail payment systems can be modelled as two-sided markets, where a payment system facilitates money exchanges between consumers on one side and merchants on the other side. The system sets rules and standards, to ensure usage and acceptance of its payment instruments by consumers and merchants respectively.Some retail payment systems exhibit indirect network externalities, which is one of the main criteria used to define two-sided markets. As more consumers use the payment platform, more merchants are induced to be affiliated with it. Conversely the value of holding payment instruments increases with the number of merchants accepting them. The theory of two-sided markets contributes to a better understanding of these retail payment systems, by showing that an asymmetric allocation of costs is needed to maximise the volume of transactions. It also starts to bring results that could explain competition between payment platforms. However, this theory entails some limits to understand thoroughly retail payment systems. First, we show that some retail payment systems, such as the credit transfer or the direct debit systems, do not necessarily meet the assumptions needed to be defined as two-sided markets. Besides, this theory does not take into account specific features of the payment industry, such as risk management or fraud prevention. This leads us to propose new research directions.
Globally, a variety of innovative technologies are emerging and traditional economic activities are gradually shifting to the digital economy. Among these, in the retail payment sector, which deals with customer contact and payment information, a trend to review interbank retail payment systems is occurring in many countries. The UK initiative has led the way, and similar efforts to instantiate and remake retail payment systems into new systems have been underway in various countries. One of the reasons of the reviews is the fact that, from the user's point of view, there are many aspects of payment services provided by companies that are not user-friendly. In the Japanese retail payments sector, there are various issues such as lack of interoperability, and the government and the banking industry are working to improve these issues. This paper focuses on providing recommendations for the Japanese case. It examines the state of the retail payment systems, considering the payment systems as a quasi-public social infrastructure that can affect all industries, rather than simply a system in the financial sector. More specifically, this paper focuses on the interbank retail fast payment systems and mobile payments based on it, while taking a broad view of the retail payment system, including its regulatory framework. There are various stakeholders with different perspectives in the retail payment system, and the central bank has a neutral perspective and can be the best entity that could provide the system. In reviewing the retail payment system, it is desirable for stakeholders to compare multiple design options and make decisions after clarifying the performance and functions they need. In the Japanese case, the best design option in the short term would be to utilize the banking industry's Cotra system while applying regulations to ensure interoperability, and in the long term, the central bank could provide the system, including the issuance of Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC). This paper aims to provide a new perspective to stakeholders of the Japanese retail payment system and contribute to the discussion on the future review of it.
Handbook of Blockchain, Digital Finance, and Inclusion, Volume 1: Cryptocurrency, FinTech, InsurTech, and Regulation explores recent advances in digital banking and cryptocurrency, emphasizing mobile technology and evolving uses of cryptocurrencies as financial assets. Contributors go beyond summaries of standard models to describe new banking business models that will be sustainable and will likely dictate the future of finance. The volume not only emphasizes the financial opportunities made possible by digital banking, such as financial inclusion and impact investing, but it also looks at engineering theories and developments that encourage innovation. Its ability to illuminate present potential and future possibilities make it a unique contribution to the literature. Explores recent advances in digital banking and cryptocurrency, emphasizing mobile technology and evolving uses of cryptocurrencies as financial assets Explains the practical consequences of both technologies and economics to readers who want to learn about subjects related to their specialties Encompasses alternative finance, financial inclusion, impact investing, decentralized consensus ledger and applied cryptography Provides the only advanced methodical summary of these subjects available today
The emergence of new electronic payment methods is raising federal concern about the effects they may have on the federal budget and monetary policy. This study suggests that the market for these payment methods is likely to emerge slowly, allowing time for gradual adjustment. It fully explains all of the new payment methods and their usefulness. Contents: stored-value cards, on-line payment systems (electronic checking accounts, on-line scrip, home banking systems), and policy issues (regulation, &legal). Glossary. Charts and graphs.
This book examines the nature of retail financial transaction infrastructures. Contributions assume a long-term outlook in their exploration of the key financial processes and systems that support a global transition to a cashless economy. The volume offers both modern and historic accounts that demonstrate the constantly changing role of payment instruments. It brings together different theoretical approaches to the study, re-examining and forecasting changes in retail payment systems. Chapters explore a global transition to a cashless society and contemplate future alternatives to cash, cheques and plastic, featuring the perspectives of academics from different disciplines in conversation and industry participants from six continents. Readers are invited to discover the innovation in payment systems and how it co-evolves with changes in society and organisations through personal, corporate and governmental processes.
Retail payment systems play an important role in the smooth functioning of an economy and inefficiencies in the retail payments market can have cascading effects throughout the economy. While there are a number of issues that are responsible for the persistence of inefficiencies in retail payment markets, the lack of a coherent, holistic strategy for the development of retail payment systems is among the most common. In order to develop such a strategy, it is important to economically substantiate the migration from less cost-efficient retail payment instruments (typically cash and paper-based instruments) to more cost-efficient ones (typically electronic payments). Overall, establishing a sound economic baseline for national retail payment systems in terms of costs of different payment instruments can better guide system development and enable high-impact changes. This document is designed to serve as a practical guide for central banks and other public or private-sector stakeholders interested in conducting a study on the costs of day-to-day retail payments in their economies. The results of a cost study based on this methodology can help decision makers to agree on the targeted gains in efficiency in their retail payments system, define an implementation plan for achieving a desired future mix of payment instruments, and provide information for all stakeholders involved in the retail payments market.
As innovation in retail payments continues and the systems evolve, effective governance of them becomes more complicated and increases in importance. Retail payment systems are essential for the economy to function efficiently, and more and more, they are something on which all individuals rely on in order to participate in economic life. Effective governance arrangements of retail payment systems are critical not just for the stability, reliability, and efficiency of the financial system but also for its capacity to manage and respond to the changing policy and market environment. Governance calls for focused attention, and retail payment systems deserve and require distinct and specific guidance regarding governance. This is because issues related to retail payment system governance go beyond the typical corporate issues, precisely because of the underlying public interest and the broader public policy objectives of safety and efficiency. This paper provides context and considerations regarding the governance of retail payment systems within this changing environment. It provides examples of approaches specific to the governance of retail payment systems and the different factors that influence and guide them. It refers to related legal frameworks, principles, and reference materials that may be useful in conducting reviews. And it draws on and shares examples of the challenges, frameworks, and arrangements of specific countries and systems. The paper provides specific guidance for practical matters, such as the regular assessment and revision of governance arrangements, the importance of acknowledging public interest, maintaining access rules that are in line with market needs and developments, achieving and maintaining a high degree of transparency regarding governance, and in ensuring that the board and management have the right skills and knowledge. The paper concludes with several themes for consideration that will help authorities and other relevant stakeholders navigate the topic of governance for retail payment systems.
This book makes a practical contribution to increased understanding of payment system design and management and of the relationship between the payment system and monetary policy. The authors of the twelve papers included in the book are central banking experts from around the world who draw on their experiences in providing technical assistance to the central banks of the countries of the former U.S.S.R.
