Why instant payments matter so much for your business and your wallet

Instant payments and real-time transfers are reshaping how both small businesses and individuals manage their money.

When funds arrive in seconds, the way people plan, make decisions, and take on risk in everyday life also changes. Real-time payment systems reflect this shift and are becoming increasingly common worldwide. In the United States, for example, the Federal Reserve launched the FedNow Service in 2023, an infrastructure that allows banks and credit unions to offer transfers in seconds, every day of the year. More than a thousand financial institutions are already participating, processing millions of transactions with immediate availability for consumers and businesses.

The U.S. experience shows that speed does more than improve efficiency. It reduces uncertainty. When money is available instantly, decisions are no longer postponed and financial planning becomes more precise, whether for a household or a small business.

Colombia has recently moved in the same direction with Bre-B, the interoperable instant payments system developed by the Banco de la República. Through this infrastructure, users can make immediate transfers between accounts at any bank or digital wallet, regardless of the financial institution on either end.

The central bank explained that with Bre-B, users can send money in seconds using a “key,” such as a phone number, national ID, email address, or a previously registered alphanumeric code. The logic is straightforward: less friction, fewer steps, and fewer doubts about whether a payment will go through.

Since its large-scale rollout, Bre-B has registered more than 97 million keys and processed over 316,000 transactions. Transfers between individuals, businesses, and financial institutions are completed in under 20 seconds and are available 24/7, year-round. This immediacy introduces a quiet but profound change. Money stops being something that is “in transit” and becomes something you can count on exactly when you need it.

This kind of infrastructure removes barriers tied to banking hours and reduces the idle time that once forced people to wait. The result is a different relationship with time and financial control, one that reduces reliance on cash and improves financial inclusion, while also reshaping habits and expectations.

In December 2023, the Banco de la República announced its partnership with ACI Worldwide (NASDAQ: ACIW), a global leader in real-time payments software, as part of Colombia’s payment system transformation, which is now fully operational.

“This is the first system in Latin America to be built through collaborative consensus among all stakeholders in the payments ecosystem. Government, regulators, private banks, and the central bank have worked together with the goal of bringing the benefits of real-time payment modernization to Colombian consumers and businesses”, said Leonardo Villar, Governor of the Banco de la República.

Panama: building a more robust infrastructure

In Panama, digital payments have also been evolving since 2023. Although the country has historically relied heavily on cash, the development of systems such as ACH Xpress and other automated clearing houses has enabled faster and more efficient transfers between bank accounts.

These operations are managed by consortia such as Telered, which has processed more than 349 million transactions involving multiple commercial banks. While Panama does not yet have a national instant payment system as recent or as structured as Bre-B, advances in banking infrastructure and the growing use of apps and digital wallets are laying the groundwork for greater immediacy.

In practice, this shift also affects financial behavior. Less waiting means less need to anticipate risks linked to delays and more room to make real-time decisions, both for businesses and for households.

What does the rise of instant payments change for businesses and individuals?

For small and medium-sized enterprises, the main benefit of instant payments is not just speed, but certainty. Knowing that funds arrive in seconds rather than days makes it easier to plan supplier payments, manage inventory, or make cash flow decisions without relying on assumptions. Uncertainty shrinks, and with it, operational risk.

For consumers, the change is felt in control. Paying a bill, sending money to a family member, or covering an unexpected expense without wondering whether the payment will arrive on time reshapes the relationship with digital money. Immediacy removes the anxiety of waiting and strengthens trust in the system.

That behavioral shift has clear economic effects: greater financial inclusion, less cash usage, lower transaction costs, and a more dynamic economy. But above all, it redefines how people perceive everyday risk. When money moves predictably, planning stops being defensive and becomes strategic.

In the end, instant payments do more than speed up a transaction. They transform how people and businesses think, decide, and organize their finances. In a context where time matters as much as money, the real innovation lies in the confidence of knowing that both are under control.