Proof of Funds from A2Zservice.com when world payment options emerge

Despite economic strain from the financial crisis, global payments volumes continued to grow in 2009, a statement said.

"Global payments volumes continued to grow in 2009, despite economic pressure from the financial crisis," World Payments Report 2010, announced today by Capgemini, Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and European Financial Marketing Association (EFMA) said here now.

The World Payments Report 2010 examines the latest trends in the global payments outlook including payments volumes and instruments practice as well as key payments-related regulatory initiatives and the consequent strategic challenges and options for banks.

The report reveals that globally, cards remain the preferred non-cash payment instrument, accounting for more than 40 per cent of payments in most markets and 58 per cent globally.

In the Eurozone, cash-in-circulation has continued to maintain a steady growth of around 11 per cent per year since 2002, representing significant cost for society. Alternative, or non-bank providers, have made significant strides in m-payments, particularly in emerging markets, and e-payments - although both still account for only a small percentage of total worldwide transaction volumes, the report said.

The rate of growth in non-cash payments volumes in 2008 was far faster in developing economies, such as China (29 per cent), South Africa (25 per cent) and Russia (66 per cent), than in sophisticated markets, such as North America which had a growth rate of four percent, it said.

In response to the crisis, regulators are taking further steps that will have significant consequences for key elements of the payments industry. Implementing the Basel III framework, in particular, will require authority consideration and investment which, along with more stringent liquidity requirements, will exaggerate costs and could compel a deeper strategic repositioning for banks, it said.

Additional pressures come from Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Anti-Terrorist Financing (ATF) requirements, which are likely to increase the costs of processing payments orders, reducing efficiency and slowing the rate of Straight-Through Processing (STP), the report said.

"Banks are currently facing a variety of challenges from the rapidly changing payments landscape," RBS Global Transaction Services' Chief Executive, Brian Stevenson, said.

"These challenges also present significant opportunities for banks that are able to adjust their strategies and move quickly to take full advantage of new ways of working in the global payment industry," he said.

Proof of Funds