Wealthsimple is the first company to get access to real-time rail payments in Canada, which is neither a bank nor a credit union. However, it is yet to go live in Canada.
What is real-time rail payments in Canada?
It is a new venture in Canada that is certified by the ISO 20022 financial messaging standard that acts as a platform to make payments within a few seconds. You can make payments round the clock with RTR. It is safe to use as it is regulated by Payments Canada and Bank of Canada. All the financial institutions are supposed to comply with the risk-management standards for designated financial market infrastructures. RTR is allowable for the existing financial institutions. Let us find out which is the first non-banking company to get approval for RTR.
Which is the first company to start real-time rail payments in Canada?
It was reported in the Canadian media on 18th of October 2022, that Wealthsimple will be the first non-banking, no-credit union company that has gotten approval for access to real-time rail payments from the Bank of Canada. The company has gotten a green signal for direct settlement account that, in turn will aid in using the forthcoming real-time-rail payment system.
Wealthsimple currently offers a high interest savings account,crypto-currency trading platform, tax filing services, a manual trading account and robot-advisory. The CEO of Wealthsimple is Mr. Michael Katchen, who mentioned that the company will use the new feature to raise up in competition levels by innovating new products and services such as instant wage payment, quick bill payments etc.
The RTR system is beneficial to institutions such as Wealthsimple as it is fully automated, less risky, offers seamless payment systems, time-saving etc.
RTR in Canada: Conclusion
Although Bank of Canada has given approval for RTR to Wealthsimple, the launch of the RTR system for non-banks has been delayed. Hence, we are unsure when Wealthsimple’s RTR feature will go live. The tentative time it can possible be up and working is June 2023, which is nearly 8 months after approval.