SBP is gearing up to go beyond banking applications.
In the future, Russians will be able to pay for purchases using the fast payments system in the applications of mobile operators, insurance companies, microfinance organizations and fintech services. The central bank proposes to open access to the infrastructure for them starting on November 22, 2027. It will be possible to connect directly through a special account at the central bank or transfer customer payment orders to banks.
The scope of the market is already impressive. In the first quarter of 2026, 4.7 billion transactions worth 26.5 trillion rubles went through the SBP. Of this, 1.4 billion transactions amounted to purchases of goods and services worth 2.4 trillion - during the year their number increased by 16%, and their volume by 22%. In total, in 2025, the system processed 18.3 billion payments worth 103 trillion. In addition, by the end of the year, 3 million commercial and service establishments could already receive payments through SBP.
The cost of payments is also important for businesses. Now the commission that the company pays to the bank for receiving payments through this system does not exceed 0.7%. For several socially significant categories, the rate is up to 0.4%, for housing and community services - up to 0.2%. Buyers do not pay anything extra. The appearance of new participants may intensify the competition for traffic, but this will not automatically reduce the cost of calculations, because the costs of integration will not disappear.
For the banks, it is also a matter of money and control over the flow of customers: some payments can go through other applications, although the credit institutions themselves will remain participants in the settlement chain. At the same time, the refund mechanism in case of failures is still under development.