Real-time payments have been shown to influence other payment innovations and expand participation in financial services in markets where there's a large real-time network, according to Gareth Lodge, a senior analyst for payments at Celent.
"This is absolutely the case in many countries around the world," Lodge said, noting that in Chile the explicit goal for the real-time payment network is to make sure fintechs target unbanked and underbanked consumers. And in Malaysia, the national identity network can be used by any fintech wallet, broadening the available market for fintech companies.
"And of course, there's India," Lodge said, noting that the UPI rail was designed to work across phones and levels of financial literacy while serving as the backbone of financial services, rather than just payments.
"I think the key element is that these schemes were designed to fit the needs of the users, rather than just create a 'faster ACH,'" Lodge said.
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