Everyday Processing

In New Zealand, starting today, electronic payments made on weekends and public holidays can now be processed within the same day for 365 days a year. This change was facilitated through Payments NZ, which oversees New Zealand’s core payment clearing systems.

The previous system restricted banks to sending and settling payment transactions only during business days. However, now consumers can make and receive electronic payments between bank accounts, whether within the same bank or different ones, on any day of the year without waiting for a traditional business day to pass. High-value transactions, such as house settlements, will still follow the five-business-day model and won’t be affected by this change.

This move benefits businesses by improving cash flow management. Previously, there was always a delay when waiting for a transaction to clear over a weekend or holiday. Now, with immediate processing capability, business operations can run more smoothly and efficiently.

All banks participating in the Bulk Electronic Clearing System (BECS), which handles automatic payments, direct debits, direct credits, and bill payments, were required to implement this 365-payment feature by May 26.

Steve Wiggins, CEO of Payments NZ, expressed excitement about this development, stating, “We’re seeing the next evolution in New Zealand’s payment systems. The traditional ‘five business days’ model for electronic bank payments is now a thing of the past.”

A notable application of this faster processing involves account-to-account money transfers (A2A), where consumers can easily send funds to different accounts, such as from a credit union to a commercial bank, with just a button push.