Company Sponsorship - Pi Squared sponsors Money Rails [1] Technology & Innovation - Pi Squared is building FastSet, a decentralized network for instant payments [1] - FastSet delivers uncapped throughput, sub-100ms finality, and real-time verifiability [1] - FastSet settles transactions in parallel, unlike blockchains that rely on total ordering [1] Event & Community - Join Pi Squared during Devconnect on Nov 18 [1]

Modern Treasury has acquired stablecoin and fiat payment platform, Beam, a move that is set to enhance the former’s money movement platform by integrating Beam's technology and team. This initiative enables Modern Treasury’s platform to encompass both traditional and stablecoin settlement methods. The platform is designed to support transactions through stablecoins, card-based payments, and traditional rails and wire transfers, all accessible via a single application programming interface (API). Modern ...

Core Insights - PNC Bank has joined the Federal Reserve's instant payments system, marking a shift from a small group of major financial institutions that have not yet participated [1][2] - Capital One Financial plans to join FedNow by the end of the year, indicating a trend among banks to adopt instant payment systems [1] Group 1: PNC Bank's Strategy - PNC aims to support the growth of the U.S. payments ecosystem and enhance client value by joining the FedNow system [2] - PNC was a founding member of the RTP network, which has been operational since 2017 and is owned by PNC and other banks [2] Group 2: Demand for Instant Payments - There has been a surge in demand for faster payment services, driven by use cases such as emergency payroll, earned wage access, loan disbursements, and gig economy payouts [3] - Businesses are prioritizing speed, efficiency, and customer satisfaction, leading to rapid growth in immediate payments [3] Group 3: Market Participation - Citibank, previously a holdout, has joined FedNow, marking a milestone in its strategy to expand instant payment capabilities [4] - Bank of America has not yet joined FedNow, indicating varying levels of adoption among major banks [4] Group 4: Payment Systems Performance - The RTP system processes significantly more payment volume than FedNow due to its earlier launch [5] - The Clearing House reported a record of 1.8 million transactions valued at $5.2 billion processed in a single day [6] - FedNow has attracted 1,500 out of approximately 9,000 U.S. banks and credit unions, highlighting challenges in increasing participation [6]

Core Insights - PNC Bank has joined the FedNow Service, enabling it to send and receive instant payments 24/7, which is expected to enhance its Treasury Management capabilities [2][3] - The adoption of immediate payments is rapidly increasing as businesses focus on speed, efficiency, and customer satisfaction, with significant growth noted since the launch of the Real Time Payments network in 2017 and FedNow in 2023 [3] Group 1: PNC Bank's Involvement - PNC Bank's entry into the FedNow Service is aimed at driving value for clients and supporting the growth of the payments ecosystem in the U.S. [2][3] - The bank's commitment to immediate payments reflects a broader trend where financial institutions are modernizing their payment systems to meet customer demands [5][6] Group 2: Industry Trends - Research indicates that 61% of small businesses turn to FinTechs for payment solutions when banks do not meet their needs, highlighting the competitive landscape for financial institutions [4] - A third of small businesses are willing to switch banks for access to real-time payment options, emphasizing the importance of such services in retaining clients [4] Group 3: FedNow Service Growth - The FedNow network has expanded to over 1,400 participants from just 35 at its launch, showcasing significant growth in the adoption of instant payment solutions [7] - Transaction volume and value on the FedNow network are increasing at double- and triple-digit rates year on year, with a reported increase of over 10 times in transaction volume [7]

Core Insights - SouthState Bank has launched instant payment solutions for its Treasury customers, allowing them to send and receive payments in real-time [2][3] - Over the past year, the bank processed more than 600,000 instant payment transactions, totaling over $400 million [2][3] Group 1: Instant Payment Solutions - The new instant payment solutions are designed to enhance cash flow management, secure transactions, and improve reconciliation processes for businesses [3] - Instant payments are facilitated through two networks: The Clearing House's Real-Time Payments (RTP) and the Federal Reserve's FedNow, ensuring secure and encrypted transactions [6] - The instant payments adhere to the global ISO 20022 standard, which simplifies data integration into enterprise and accounting systems, leading to increased efficiency [7] Group 2: Customer Impact - Hourly, a payroll startup, participated in the pilot program and highlighted the significant impact of instant payments on employee satisfaction, allowing payments to be made within 15 seconds [4][5] - The bank aims to expand instant payment offerings beyond Treasury customers in the future [7] Group 3: Company Overview - SouthState Bank Corporation, headquartered in Winter Haven, Florida, provides a range of financial services to over 1.5 million customers across multiple states [8]

Core Insights - The Federal Reserve will increase the FedNow instant payments transaction limit from $1 million to $10 million in November, allowing financial institutions to customize transaction sizes based on their internal risk and business needs [9] - The demand for instant payments is rising, with the number of financial institutions using FedNow growing by approximately 8% since April, reaching about 1,400 banks and credit unions [6][9] - FedNow processed $245.8 billion in transactions during the second quarter, while its competitor, The Clearing House's RTP network, handled $481 billion, indicating strong competition in the instant payments market [7] Demand and Growth - The Fed's decision to raise the transaction limit was driven by increasing demand from financial institutions and businesses [3] - FedNow settled roughly 1.3 million transactions in the first quarter, a 43% increase compared to the previous quarter, and facilitated 2.1 million transactions in the second quarter, marking a 63% surge [6] Competitive Landscape - FedNow faces significant competition from The Clearing House's RTP network, which processed nearly triple the amount of payments compared to FedNow in the first quarter [7] - The introduction of new FedNow risk mitigation tools earlier this year aims to enhance the service's appeal to financial institutions by allowing them to tailor their instant payment capabilities [3][5]

Core Insights - Broadridge Financial Solutions is enhancing financial institutions' compliance with EU Instant Payment regulations through its efficient service for connectivity and message processing [1][2] - The company has successfully onboarded seven clients within five months, demonstrating rapid adoption of its instant payment solutions [2][3] - Broadridge's infrastructure supports real-time payments with zero downtime, processing transactions in less than 10 seconds [6] Group 1: Service Adoption and Impact - The service launched in fall 2024 has seen significant market adoption, reflecting Broadridge's commitment to improving transaction speed and efficiency [1][2] - Partnerships with core banking solution providers like CPB SOFTWARE and instant payment application providers such as Foconis have facilitated rapid deployment for financial institutions [5] - The instructing party model developed with the European Central Bank's TIPS system has simplified compliance and reduced costs for clients [3][4] Group 2: Operational Resilience and Compliance - Broadridge's infrastructure features "active-active" failover across two data centers, ensuring uninterrupted service availability and enhancing resilience [4] - The company is helping banks navigate the evolving regulatory landscape with confidence as the October 2025 compliance deadline approaches [4] - The solution minimizes onboarding complexity, providing a significant cost advantage for financial institutions [2][3]

Group 1: Santander's Sale and Partnership - Santander is selling approximately 49% of Santander Polska's share capital and 50% of its Polish asset management business to Erste Group for $7.9 billion [1][2] - The deal includes a partnership where Santander will provide Erste access to its payment system, allowing both banks to explore opportunities in payments, particularly with Santander Polska post-completion [1][2] Group 2: Corporate and Investment Banking Collaboration - Santander and Erste are forming a corporate and investment banking partnership to leverage each other's regional strengths, offering local solutions and market insights to corporate and institutional clients through a referral model [3] - This partnership aims to facilitate seamless client interactions and service offerings [3] Group 3: Economic Outlook and Strategic Focus - Santander's Executive Chair, Ana Botín, highlighted the bank's focus on helping clients manage volatility related to U.S. tariffs and geopolitical uncertainty, which has contributed to a decline in the five-year growth forecast for the world economy to 3.1%, the lowest in 16 years [4] - The bank is leveraging its global scale and diversification as stabilizers in the current economic environment, anticipating continued profitability growth by 2025 [5] Group 4: Importance of Real-Time Payments - Research indicates that offering real-time payments is crucial for banks to attract and retain small and medium-sized business (SMB) clients, with many SMBs willing to pay fees for instant payment advantages [6][7] - Specifically, 88% of the smallest SMBs, those with annual revenues of less than $100,000, would be willing to pay a percentage fee for instant payments [7]