Payments Canada update on Real-Time Rail (RTR)
Payments Canada, its regulators and member financial institutions remain fully committed to delivering a safe, secure and efficient real-time payment system for Canada. Current delivery delays, unrelated to the exchange technology components, are impacting the launch date of the RTR. To understand and mitigate any future delays in the remainder of the program, Payments Canada, with full support from our Board of Directors and regulators, is undertaking a targeted review of risks identified in the delivery of the RTR.
During this review period, vendor delivery activities will continue while Payments Canada will suspend or shift the focus of some RTR program activities. The review will take approximately three months to complete and we expect to provide an action plan for the path forward at that time. This will support delivery certainty for the program.
Earlier this year, Payments Canada engaged a third party to review delivery assurance. The delivery assurance review focused on program management, people and process. This review completed in Q1 and confirmed that Payments Canada is well positioned to continue to lead the program effectively, and recommended additional testing and investments to enhance ongoing operations once the RTR system goes live. Payments Canada has made progress in the implementation of all recommendations.
Payments Canada recognizes that timelines have shifted since the RTR program was launched and acknowledges the implications of delays to the payment ecosystem. By working together, Payments Canada, its regulators and member financial institutions will deliver a real-time payment system that will benefit all Canadians. The RTR will meet defined public policy objectives, will reflect the safety, soundness and efficiency that Payments Canada has delivered since 1984, and will allow Canada to keep pace and compete globally.
About Payments Canada
Payments Canada is a public purpose organization that owns and operates Canada's payment systems, Lynx and the Automated Clearing Settlement System (ACSS). Payments Canada is responsible for the physical infrastructure and the associated by-laws, rules, and standards that support these systems. It also has a duty to promote the efficiency, safety, and soundness of Canada's payment systems while taking into account the interests of end users. In 2022, Payments Canada's systems cleared and settled over $119 trillion—more than $476 billion every business day. Transactions that pass through these systems include debit card payments, pre-authorized debits, direct deposits, bill payments, wire payments and cheques initiated and received by Canadians and Canadian businesses. Payments Canada is working closely with the payment ecosystem to modernize Canada's payment systems to ensure Canada and Canadian businesses remain globally competitive.
