What implications will these changes have for the entire payments ecosystem? And what further adjustments will the cashless payment system have to undergo if it is to remain efficient and secure in the future? 4 5 6 7  Allsopp, Peter et al. (2009), The evolution of real-time gross settlement – access, liquidity and credit, and pricing, The World Bank Financial Infrastructure Series – Payment Systems Policy and Research, February 2009. Interbank payments comprise payments relating to FX operations or money and capital market transactions, but also large-value payments transacted by the non-bank sector. PostFinance’s decision in 2016 to settle all of its domestic payments via SIC in future has also significantly increased the volume of retail payments in the SIC system. The recent SNB survey on payment methods shows that cash continues to play an important role in payments in Switzerland. However, a large proportion of payments by households is now conducted via credit card, and above all via debit card. Swiss National Bank (2018), Survey on payment methods 2017 – Survey on payment behaviour and the use of cash in Switzerland. Page 5/9  Before turning to these important questions, I should emphasise that I will not be talking about cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin or Ether. 8 The question I will focus on today is: how is digitalisation changing payment systems? One important finding is that the changes being wrought by digitalisation are affecting the entire payments ecosystem.
Central banks can reduce payment-related risks very effectively. By establishing security and confidence, they contribute decisively to the efficiency of the payment system. Today, money changes hands mainly via transfers or direct debits, with payments being booked directly to the commercial banks’ accounts at the central bank. Settling in electronic central bank money is equivalent to settling in cash; it is final and irrevocable. This approach reduces credit risk and inspires confidence – both in the payment system and in money itself. On the slide, this is the third phase: the transition from private promises to pay to central bank money – in other words, to today’s banknotes and the electronic sight deposits that commercial banks hold with their central bank. RTGS systems – a milestone in the evolution of cashless payments Let us now turn to Switzerland. For many years, the postal cheque service of Swiss Post was at the heart of the cashless payment system. This area only began to become attractive for banks as well from the middle of the 20th century. Around this time, so-called ‘bank clearing’ – Switzerland’s first interbank payment system – came into existence. This was an important step in the development of the cashless payment system. However, the predominantly manual nature of the system made it cumbersome. It could take up to four days to execute a payment, making efficient liquidity management virtually impossible for the participating banks. Furthermore, in the ‘bank clearing’ system, payments were settled on a net basis.