PAYMENTS

“ The creation of the Faster Payments system in 2008 revolutionised the way we transfer money, enabling real-time transfers of money, available 24 / 7, 365 days of the year, unlike BACS, which can take a few days,” explains Marcin Glogowski, SVP and Managing Director of Europe & UK CEO at Marqeta.

Marqeta is a leading payment card platform provider that processes billions of transactions annually for businesses ranging from gig economy platforms to enterprise clients.

The adoption has been swift and comprehensive.“ Today, over 70 countries in the world have successfully introduced a form of real-time payments technology,” Marcin reveals.

This rapid global expansion creates opportunities for knowledge sharing between established and emerging markets. Countries developing their own systems can benefit from lessons learned by early adopters.

“ As more countries adopt a version of RTP, there is plenty that can be learned from the UK’ s successful rollout,” Marcin says. His experience implementing payment solutions across European markets provides valuable insights.

Three key lessons emerge from successful implementations.

“ Firstly, the need for strong collaboration between public bodies and private organisations, minimising friction between the two, is essential for rapid adoption and regulatory clarity,” he explains.

User experience design forms the second crucial element.“ Increasing accessibility to financial solutions should be at the core of the implementation of real-time payment infrastructure,” Marcin continues.

“ I believe there needs to be more attention paid to the interoperability of the service. In the financial ecosystem, there are a variety of different payment systems, and ensuring these can communicate seamlessly and quickly is important,” he adds.

These foundational principles guide successful real-time payment implementations, yet they also highlight the complexity of balancing multiple competing priorities.

Security challenges in an instant world The speed that makes real-time payments attractive also creates new vulnerabilities.

Instant settlement finality means fraudulent transactions cannot be easily reversed once completed.

“ At the heart of Marqeta’ s proposition is a commitment to keeping customers’ details safe and secure in an environment that faces increasing fraud risks,” Marcin states.

Payment companies must embed sophisticated risk controls without compromising transaction speed.

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