The launch of the UK’s renewed Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) service, RT2, marks a defining moment for sterling payments. Already settling hundreds of billions of pounds each day, the new infrastructure is the foundation on which the Bank of England (the “Bank”) intends to continue to build the future of high-value payments. Its four strategic objectives—greater access, increased resilience, wider interoperability, and improved user functionality are not just technical upgrades. They serve as signals to banks and financial institutions that the future of payments will require more control, greater adaptability, and more substantial alignment with global standards.
For senior banking professionals, the renewal is more than an operational milestone. It is a strategic inflection point. Decisions made now about how your organization participates in CHAPS will shape competitiveness, resilience, and customer perception for years to come.
The limitations of CHAPS indirect access
For decades, indirect participation has offered a practical entry point to CHAPS. It has allowed smaller banks and new entrants to access high-value payments without the cost and complexity of becoming direct participants. Yet this model comes at a price. Dependence on a sponsor bank means limited control over settlement timing, liquidity management, and opportunities for innovation. Costs are not always transparent, and, crucially, the capabilities of another institution influence resilience.
In today’s environment, those trade-offs are more significant. Regulators and customers alike expect uninterrupted operations, proactive risk management, and faster innovation in payment services. Indirect access can constrain your ability to deliver on those expectations, leaving your institution reliant on the priorities and systems of others. For payments leaders, this raises a fundamental question: Does indirect access align with your strategic ambitions, or does it expose you to long-term risk?
The advantages of CHAPS direct participation
Direct participation changes the equation. By connecting directly to the Bank’s RTGS system, your institution gains complete control over its CHAPS payments, yielding tangible benefits in liquidity management, cost efficiency, and operational resilience. It also provides the ability to innovate with richer ISO 20022 data and to take advantage of extended operating hours, opening new opportunities to enhance customer experience.
Just as important are the reputational and strategic dimensions. Direct participation demonstrates independence, capability, and commitment to clients and counterparties. It sends a clear message that your institution is not simply meeting the minimum standard but leading in one of the most critical aspects of modern banking—the ability to move money securely, efficiently, and transparently at scale.
Why timing matters
The Bank has been encouraging greater direct participation for nearly a decade. In 2017, it extended settlement account access to non-bank PSPs for the first time. In 2021, it signalled that broader access would be a central objective of RTGS renewal. With RT2 now live, the onboarding process is streamlined, eligibility is wider, and barriers to entry are lower than ever before.
At the same time, regulatory and market momentum are accelerating. Mandates around ISO 20022 enhanced data, purpose codes, and legal entity identifiers (LEIs) are reshaping the way high-value payments are processed and reported. Institutions that act now will be better positioned to leverage compliance as a competitive advantage, utilizing enhanced data to enhance transparency, streamline operations, and deliver new services to customers. Those who delay risk being locked into dependency, missing the chance to shape the future of the world’s payments ecosystem, and falling behind more agile competitors.
The next steps for payment leaders
The renewal of the UK’s RTGS system marks a rare moment of structural change in the payments sector. For payment leaders, this presents an opportunity to reassess the institution’s participation model and determine whether indirect access remains a suitable approach. The question is no longer just operational efficiency. It is whether your payments infrastructure aligns with your broader strategy for growth, resilience, and customer leadership.
About the authors
Jeremy McDougall
Jeremy McDougall
Senior Solution Consulting Director
Jeremy has more than 20 years of experience leading large-scale payment programs, technology, and digitally enabled transformations. Jeremy specializes in cross-border payments and ISO 20022, focusing on helping clients deliver longer-term growth propositions and strategies through payments transformation. He has extensive experience in Financial Services, having worked with a wide range of organizations, including leading global banks and financial market infrastructures. Jeremy has a breadth of banking and technology experience, having started his career as a commercial relationship manager for a large UK bank prior to moving into technology-led payments roles.
Andy has extensive payment experience that spans over three decades. His expertise focuses on financial crime and payment processing, as well as instant and real-time payments. In ACI, Andy has held several senior roles, with the most recent being driving growth in Europe and the UK. Prior to joining ACI, Andy worked with Barclays Bank, which provided him with practical payment experience, where he represented the bank at APACS, the UK payments association. Andy is also a representative on Pay. UK’s Industry Advisory Council (IAC) as well as a member of the UK’s Fraud Advisory Panel.
Jeremy is a Strategic Solution Consulting Director in the ACI Solution Consulting team. He has more than 20 years of experience leading large-scale payments programs, technology, and digitally enabled transformations. Jeremy specializes in cross-border payments and ISO 20022, focusing on helping clients deliver longer-term growth propositions and strategies through payments transformation. He has extensive experience in Financial Services, having worked with a wide range of organizations, including leading global banks and financial market infrastructures. Jeremy has a breadth of banking and technology experience, having started his career as a commercial relationship manager for a large UK bank prior to moving into technology-led payments roles.
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