Karsten Wenzlaff, Advisor
August 26th, 2025
Karsten Wenzlaff is a Crowdfunding and Fintech Expert from Germany. He is Secretary-General of Digit[...]
BNY Mellon Sets U.S. Record with $10M Instant Payment
Payments | Feb 11, 2025
Image: Freepik
BNY Mellon’s $10M Instant Payment Sets a New Standard for Real Time Transactions
On February 10, 2025, BNY Mellon announced that they just processed the largest instant payment in U.S. history. That's right. $10 million on the RTP® network following a recent increase in transaction limits. This is a big milestone for the payments industry and shows growing adoption of real time payments which are changing the way companies manage liquidity, streamline operations, and financial efficiency.
Key Takeaways
- Game-changing $10 million payment on The Clearing House RTP® network. The previous network limit was $11 million but on February 9, 2025 the cap increased to $10 million, allowing businesses to move larger amounts instantly. The first 8 figure instant payment was between Computershare to an account at another financial institution.
See: 2024 Global Payments Growth, Trends, and Fintech’s Edge
- Real time payments are on the rise. Currently, over 285,000 businesses use the RTP® network monthly for real time transactions. The network now has the ability to send large payments 24/7, eliminating delays caused by traditional banking hours or batch processing.
- Traditional wire transfers are becoming less attractive than real time solutions. Instant payments can provide a competitive advantage for your financial requirements including needs like payroll, or paying suppliers, and broker settlements. For businesses this means no more payment delays, faster payroll processing, and immediate supplier settlements. For individuals, it means getting paid on time without the waiting game.
Ann Bowering, CEO of Computershare Issuer Services, North America:
“In our industry, the ability to move large payments instantly, securely, and reliably is crucial. With real-time payments, we can settle higher-value transactions immediately, reducing counterparty risk and improving overall working capital efficiency. This level of speed and certainty was not possible before, and this is an exciting step forward for how we can potentially deliver solutions to our corporate clients.”
Why It Matters for Fintech
The world is moving towards instant everything and payments are no exception. Fintech companies have a big opportunity to build new services that tap into the empowerment of real time transactions. Some examples and ideas below:
See: The Transformative Impact of Instant Payments on Financial Crime Mitigation
1. Instant Payroll and Gig Worker Payments
- Workers can get paid immediately after finishing a job
- Employers can improve cash flow and keep their employees happy by offering real time salary payouts
2. Fast B2B Payments
- Businesses can pay/settle invoices instantly, improving cash flow and supplier relationships
- Refunds and customer payments can be processed faster (i.e., think e-commerce or SaaS)
3. Real Time Loans and Repayments
- Lenders can distribute loan funds instantly
- Borrowers can make instant repayments (helping to avoid late fees, resulting in better credit management)
Payments Canada Real-Time Rail Update
On January 29, 2025, Payments Canada who is managing Canada's Real-Time Rail (RTR) system provided their most recent quarterly update here. Similar to The Clearing House's RTP® network or the government's competing FedNow's instant payment service (both in the U.S.), Canada's RTR system once live means that businesses and consumers will no longer have to deal with delays, batch processing or operating hour restrictions when sending money. Here's the latest updates:
- The RTR technical build is now more than halfway complete with ongoing infrastructure development
- Testing preparations have started including finalizing test strategies, selecting tools, and onboarding industry participants
- A centralized fraud mitigation system is being developed with consensus reached on high level design requirements
- Canadian Payments Act amendments are progressing, expanding membership eligibility to PSPs and other financial institutions
- No official launch date has been announced but Payments Canada continues towards full deployment (NB: the project launched in 2019)
See: RPAA Registration Deadline Passed See Who Applied
When Canada's RTR officially launches, we can all expect faster and more efficient payments across Canada. We'll finally catch up with the U.S., U.K, and Europe, where real time payments are already now well established.
Closing Thought
Now that real time payment services are here, how long will it be before it becomes the business standard? For now, companies especially fintechs should adapt and adopt quickly to gain a competitive edge and/or not be left behind. Without a doubt, there's increasing demand for instant, secure, high value transactions.
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, artificial intelligence, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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