Real-time payments to boost SG's GDP by $793.2m in 2026

In 2021, total transactions facilitated $483.1m of additional economic output.

Real-time payments are expected to facilitate $793.2m (US$573m) of additional economic output in 2026 for Singapore, equating to 0.15% of the city-state's GDP, data from the third Prime-Time for Real-Time study by ACI Worldwide and Centre for Economics and Business Research (Cebr).

In 2021, real-time payments boosted Singapore's GDP by $483.1m (US$349m) and helped local businesses save about $145.3m (US$105m). 

Come 2026, businesses and consumers are expected to save $319.8m (US$231m) because of real-time payments.

Within five years, real-time payment transactions are also expected to reach $834.5m (US$603m), accounting for 15.5% of all payments in the country.

Last year, real-time payments accounted for 8.7% of all payments, reaching $354,3m (US$256m).

“Singapore continues to embrace real-time payments and is primed for even higher growth and economic benefits,”  said Chee Cheng Ong, Head of ASEAN, ACI Worldwide.

“As Singapore looks towards interoperability, interconnectivity, and inter-regional collaboration - there will be a high growth potential both for the domestic and cross-border market in the near term," the expert added.

1 SGD = 0.72 USD