Apart from card payments, almost all digital payments between banks go through accounts they hold in the Riksbank's RIX settlement system. The RIX system consists of two services: RIX-RTGS for large-value payments and aggregated payments and RIX-INST for individual instant payments. Several major modernisation projects are under way, which have a bearing on both services.

Banks are expected to offer their customers more types of instant payments through RIX-INST

Since November 2024, RIX-INST participants have had new opportunities to offer instant payment services (see RIX-INST enabling competition and innovation). This creates the conditions for increased competition and innovation in the payments market. Through RIX-INST, banks and other payment service providers can now develop new payment services where their customers can send instant payments to accounts in other connected banks.

This development is an important step towards a more dynamic payments market. It allows banks and other financial actors to differentiate their services and meet customers' growing demand for fast and smooth payment solutions. At the same time, it helps to strengthen competition, which in turn can lead to better and more affordable services for consumers and companies.

The launch of new payment services by RIX-INST participants has so far been limited. Only two small banks send payments daily. This suggests that there is untapped potential for innovation, competition and development in the area. The Riksbank expects the participants, not least the major actors, to start offering their customers more types of instant payments through RIX-INST than via Swish alone. An external evaluation of the Swedish payments market (see Future payments infrastructure needs to evolve) emphasises that Sweden needs to continue developing the market for instant payments. However, as more payments become instant, banks and other payment service providers need to have money laundering control systems that work for different types of instant payments. This is important as new services must not facilitate money laundering, terrorist financing and fraud.

RIX-INST can facilitate payments between Swedish kronor and Danish kroner and euros

RIX-INST uses the technical platform TIPS, which is the Eurosystem's platform for the settlement of instant payments. Together with the European Central Bank, Banca d'Italia and Danmarks Nationalbank, the Riksbank is investigating whether it is possible to make instant payments between different currencies connected to TIPS, which today are Swedish kronor, euro and, from 2025, also Danish kroner.

The ECB is planning a new initiative that is expected to become operational in autumn 2025. The initiative, called TIPS cross-currency, shall make it easier for companies to develop services for executing instant payments between different currencies on the TIPS platform. Companies and organisations that have joined RIX-INST will be able to utilise the cross-currency service. In connection with the decision by the ECB to launch the service, a decision was also made to explore the possibilities of making payments between currencies outside the EU. In practice, this means examining whether it is possible to link the TIPS platform with other similar systems outside the EU, for example through Project Nexus, developed by the Bank for International Settlements, and the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), developed by the National Payments Corporation of India.

The Riksbank encourages banks and other payment service providers that are connected to RIX-INST to also connect to and use the cross-currency service. However, it is up to banks and other payment service providers connected to RIX-INST to create the payment services that the public wants.

EU regulation opens the door to new actors

The payments market is a central part of the financial system, and increased competition among payment service providers is crucial to drive innovation and efficiency. Of the various actors offering payment services, only credit institutions, such as banks and credit market companies, currently have direct access to payment systems such as RIX and Bankgirot's clearing and settlement services. On 9 April 2025, amendments to the Act on systems for the settlement of obligations in the financial market will enter into force. These legislative amendments mean that other payment service providers such as payment institutions and electronic money institutions will also be able to participate in these systems. For more details, see the section entitled "Increased access to payment infrastructure can lead to more efficient payments" in the chapter Are payments in Sweden efficient?.

The Riksbank takes a positive view of the new possibilities and will open up RIX to more types of participant. At the same time, widening participation in these systems presents both opportunities and challenges. On the one hand, it can lead to increased competition and innovation, and on the other hand, it places higher demands on risk management and monitoring in the systems. The balance between innovation and stability will be key. Although payment institutions and e-money institutions must be authorised and supervised by Finansinspektionen, the requirements imposed on these entities are less extensive than for credit institutions and financial infrastructures. It is important that Bankgirot and the Riksbank make well-balanced adjustments to the terms and conditions in order, on the one hand, to reduce the risks when new participants are admitted into the systems and, on the other hand, not to set up unnecessary obstacles.

RIX-RTGS to migrate to a new standard for payment messages

Digital payments are based on communication between the parties involved in the payment systems and these must therefore communicate using the same ‘language’. All around the world, central banks, banks and financial infrastructures use the SWIFT network and its message format and standard to execute payments. However, SWIFT’s previous message standard has limitations, including the amount of information that can be sent with a payment. To meet these needs, in autumn 2020, SWIFT presented a strategy and timetable for migration to the new ISO 20022 format.

The Riksbank is working on adapting RIX-RTGS payment messages to ISO 20022. The transition to the new standard will be finalised in May 2025. RIX-INST is already adapted to this message standard.

The international use of ISO 20022 opens the door to faster and more efficient processing of payments between countries and currencies. The new format, which includes more information, can also help to increase the transparency and traceability of international payments.