Swiss National Bank launches instant payments solution with SIX

By Gloria Methri

The Swiss National Bank and SIX Interbank Clearing have partnered to launch a new instant payments solution in Switzerland. This solution enables 60 financial institutions to receive and process instant payments, covering more than 95% of Swiss retail payment transactions.

The new instant payments service will be expanded to all financial institutions active in retail payment transactions by the end of 2026. The first 60 institutions have already launched retail offerings enabling customers to send instant payments. In the coming months, further banks will announce similar services.

Instant payments allow private individuals and companies to perform account-to-account transactions with immediate execution and final settlement in seconds – 24 hours a day, 7 days a week (including public holidays). This offers significant advantages for individuals, companies and commercial banks.

Thanks to shorter settlement chains, risks are reduced, and funds received are available immediately. For companies and commercial banks, instant payments expand opportunities for automating processes and linking with other services. Traditional transfers will still be possible.

The Swiss National Bank and SIX Interbank Clearing Ltd expect instant payments to become established in Switzerland in the medium term and form the basis for further innovation in payment transactions.

The technical framework for this new type of payment was established with the successful go-live of the new generation of the central Swiss payment system in November 2023.

SIX previewed the launch of the new instant payment service in a press release in January, saying that the service supports the future viability of payment traffic in Switzerland. It will provide solutions to both Swiss consumers and businesses.

This market launch represents a further important milestone and reflects the collective stakeholder commitment to the future of cashless payments in Switzerland.