12/10/2025
EU's Instant Payments Regulation (IPR)
The EU's Instant Payments Regulation demands urgent upgrades, presenting both challenges and opportunities for banks and payment companies.
In brief
• From 9 January 2025, EU banks must be able to receive instant payments, requiring significant infrastructure upgrades and operational adjustments.
• Enhanced sanctions screening and robust fraud detection are critical to mitigate risks associated with real-time payment processing.
• By October 2025, banks must be able to send instant payments, which means addressing verification of payee, bulk payments and liquidity management challenges.
The European Commission’s Instant Payments Regulation (IPR) is set to revolutionize the region’s payments ecosystem, with banks and payment companies across the eurozone required to comply by 9 January 2025, followed by those in the rest of the EU from 2027.
Instant payments – fund transfers settled within 10 seconds and available 24/7 – are more than just a technological upgrade. They are a response to customer demands for speed, security and reliability in financial transactions.
The IPR aims to accelerate adoption of instant payments to support Europe’s growing digital economy and the evolving needs of its consumers and corporates. It seeks to remove barriers such as security concerns, accessibility gaps and operational challenges that have hindered the widespread adoption. By standardizing these capabilities, the EU envisions a financial system that is fast, secure and inclusive. This move is part of a broader strategy to strengthen Europe’s financial infrastructure and enhance strategic autonomy in the digital economy.
Instant payments accounted for just 0.08% of all EU credit transfers in 2018. Today, they still represent less than 20% of transfers. With the upcoming IPR regulatory deadlines and increased customer demands, the volume of instant credit transfers is expected to increase rapidly.
