New findings from Australian Payments Plus and Crisil Coalition Greenwich point to growing uptake of real-time payment systems across large enterprises in Australia. According to the research, nearly four in ten of the organisations polled had already begun preparing for the changeover.
Data from the research point to a notable increase in awareness throughout Australian businesses. About 73% of the 682 large companies included in the poll reported familiarity with the transition to real-time payments, a notable rise from 51% the previous year. The proportion of major corporations that had begun transition preparations climbed from 29% to 43%, pointing to broader engagement among finance and treasury departments beyond early-stage awareness.
Companies are coming to view the shift as part of a wholesale transformation of payment infrastructure, rather than a targeted effort aimed solely at accelerating transaction speeds. Those surveyed pointed to enhanced liquidity oversight, greater transparency around transactions, streamlined reconciliation processes, and tighter payment controls as the primary drivers of their interest.
Organisations with higher annual turnover showed a tendency toward more developed implementation stages. Transition planning had commenced at 48% of corporations posting annual revenue of AUD $1 billion or above, versus 28% of those falling below that threshold.
Levels of preparation differed across those who had already begun getting ready. According to the research, roughly one in five respondents had completed or begun their transition, just over a third were actively mapping out their next steps, and nearly half remained at an early planning phase. The variation in responses points to many organisations still navigating operational questions around technology, processes, and internal adaptation.
Compatibility with enterprise resource planning software, treasury management tools, and existing payment workflows stood out as a key consideration during planning. Companies noted that the shift encompassed more than just technological change. A number of participants were weighing up exposure management, governance frameworks, and the process of building a financial justification as part of their planning.
The New Payments Platform received notable attention throughout the study. Daily throughput has reached nearly $9 billion in payments and close to two billion transactions annually, figures that reflect the considerable scale of the existing infrastructure.
Survey participants identified the adoption of ISO 20022 as a notable consideration driving the shift. The standard was connected to more automated, data-intensive payment workflows and greater harmonisation with transaction systems operating across other markets. The Confirmation of Payee tool was also among the functions drawn attention to, with survey participants noting that the tool has the potential to strengthen payment oversight by providing institutions with greater assurance that funds reach their intended destination.
The research additionally drew attention to the part played by financial institutions and technology vendors in supporting businesses through the transition. A number of organisations are turning to third-party providers to help navigate infrastructure transitions, evaluate operational consequences, and determine migration schedules.
AP+ Chief Executive Officer Lynn Kraus noted that the findings pointed to a wider shift in how corporations approach payments, with finance and treasury leaders conveying that the issue extended well beyond transaction speed. Kraus noted that instant payment infrastructure is viewed as a tool for enhancing cash flow visibility, streamlining financial workflows, and improving the overall payment experience — from ensuring staff receive wages punctually to eliminating the strain of end-of-month processing deadlines.
Ian Andrews, Senior Relationship Manager at Crisil Coalition Greenwich, noted that organisations further advanced in their adoption journey are already examining broader operational impacts, adding that momentum toward wider uptake appears to be gathering pace. Andrews noted that a growing number of organisations had progressed beyond awareness into active planning, with the most advanced among them already exploring how real-time payments could reshape back-office operations.
Findings point to instant payment systems being viewed increasingly as an organisation-wide concern rather than a departmental one. Survey respondents pointed to benefits spanning treasury and finance operations, along with disbursements to staff and vendors and improvements to the customer experience. This pattern of adoption appears to be gaining traction even at organisations that have yet to move beyond the preparation stage.
The shift is widely attributed to practical operational needs, encompassing payroll scheduling, the management of vendor commitments, and the speed at which accounting teams can monitor and reconcile cash flows. Andrews noted that the shift had moved beyond a narrow payments upgrade, with businesses increasingly treating the move to real-time payments as an enterprise-wide overhaul rather than an isolated workstream.
Kraus noted that external guidance would prove valuable for businesses embarking on the transition, adding that financial institutions and technology providers were helping organisations recognise the potential benefits involved. Kraus advised bringing in partners at an early stage, establishing a clear roadmap, and allowing desired business outcomes to guide the process for organisations at the start of their transformation journey.
