Bank of Russia to annually assess digitalisation and convenience of payment services
The Bank of Russia has assessed the level of households’ and businesses’ satisfaction with payment services and calculated the digitalisation index of the national payment system for the first time. The new indicators complement the existing ones to monitor and analyse the payment market (e.g. the proportions of cashless payments and alternative payment methods in retail turnover, etc.).
The assessment of the satisfaction level shows that people are generally happy with modern payment services and instruments. Households are highly satisfied with the fast and seamless payment and money transfer methods, which require minimum effort. However, the system for utility, educational, and public services payments is considered not convenient enough (since card payments require customers to enter full card details and confirm transactions with a code).
Businesses’ assessments were fairly moderate. Their level of satisfaction with settlement and cash management services was relatively low. For example, enterprises do not always understand the tariff policy and the criteria based on which banks decide to block or restrict money transfers. Furthermore, businesses have difficulties when making settlements with foreign counterparties.
The digitalisation index is a comprehensive measure of the payment market’s maturity. It factors in 15 components, including the level of new technologies’ penetration and businesses’ demand for them, the range and accessibility of payment services, as well as the security and smooth operation of the infrastructure. The index is calculated based on such information as market participants’ data and business survey results. The 2025 index value will become a baseline for the annual assessment of the payment market dynamics.
The Bank of Russia plans to discuss the assessment results with market participants to devise measures to enhance the services’ convenience, quality, and transparency for households and businesses.