International trade depends on cross‑border payments. The European Central Bank’s latest Economic Bulletin reports that many payments remain slow and costly because they rely on correspondent banks, which add intermediaries, fees, and currency conversion costs. Roughly 30 % of cross‑border transactions now cost more than 3 % of the amount, and only 40 % settle within a working day. The bulletin notes that interlinking domestic fast payment systems—such as Europe’s TARGET Instant Payment Settlement, the U.S. FedNow Service, Brazil’s Pix and India’s UPI—could cut costs, speed transfers and increase trade by about 4 %. Econometric analysis finds the benefit is larger in regions with high payment costs and when wholesale settlement is available. The findings support the G20 roadmap to connect payment systems worldwide.
© European Central Bank, 2025.
Summary derived from the ECB website (https://www.ecb.europa.eu ).
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