Led by Payments Canada, several key players in the payments ecosystem— such as Interac, commercial banks and other stakeholders—have been working to bring these payments systems fully into the modern digital age. The Bank of Canada is heavily involved as a central bank, a regulator and, in some cases, a participant. Over the next year or so, these improvements will start to come online.
This is important for Canadians because it will mean greater speed, convenience, competition and choice in how people pay for goods and services. Right now, the fastest and most immediate money transfers we see are e-Transfers. But the new Real-Time Rail system—which will go live in 2022—will provide real-time payments beyond what is already offered through e-Transfer.