From February 1, Tatra Banka launches instant interbank payments within seconds. Tatra Banka and Raiffeisen banka are the first banks in Slovakia, which offer this novelty to their customers.
“We are pleased to be able to offer our customers a useful novelty that will make their lives easier, this time in the area of ​​payments. We are thus confirming our leadership in the field of innovation” – said Natália Major, Member of the Board of Directors of Tatra Banka, on this occasion.Â
Until recently, transfers between accounts held at different banks were made overnight, and in the case of weekends and holidays, this period could be extended to several days. From February 1, transactions between the accounts of banks in Slovakia that have signed up to the “SEPA Instant Credit Transfer” scheme will take place in a few seconds. This also applies to payments with accounts held with foreign banks that have joined the new pan-European payment scheme. The list of participating banks can be found on the website page European Payments Council.
One of the biggest advantages of immediate payments is the speed of their processing. Almost 50% of all payments will be made incomparably faster than before. Immediate payments have the potential to replace part of card or cash transactions. Customers will be able to use them for payments in brick-and-mortar stores or purchases on the Internet, while the goods or services for which they will pay will be made available to them immediately after payment. Immediate payments can also serve as an emergency transfer in case of an emergency.
Entering such payment is as easy as in the case of SEPA payments. Just provide the same information as for regular payments:
- beneficiary’s account in IBAN format,
- the amount of the payment,
- beneficiary’s account name for immediate payments abroad.
Which is good to know about instant payments
The pan-European “SEPA Instant Credit Transfer” payment scheme allows immediate payments to be made only in EUR and between banks within European countries. However, customers don`t need to remember whether they are sending money to such a bank. Tatra Banka will only allow the bank that provides this payment service.
Immediate payments are available to every customer (also to companies) and even without increased costs. For Tatra Banka and Raiffeisen banka customers, immediate payments are charged in the same way as classic SEPA payments. However, these payments are part of the service packages.
Tatra Banka will also expand the limits. It will be possible to make payments via the Tatra Banka mobile application, TB internet banking, and Raiffeisen banka`s internet banking with an indication limit of EUR 500 per day.
Standard limits for the execution of payment orders are applied to payments initiated through the Business banking TB application.
Source: Bank`s press release from February 1, 2022
