The CHAPS Market Summary 2017 reveals the value of payments grew by £7 trillion (10.5%) in 2016, with the volume of payments also reaching a new all-time high of 39.0 million.

Three new Direct Participants joined CHAPS in 2015-6, contributing 20-25% of the total 10.5% value growth, partly by externalising payment traffic that was previously processed internally with the institution that provided them with indirect access. Direct participation has also enabled new entrants to extend the range of the banking products that they offer.

The number of Direct Participants has now increased to 26, following the addition of Bank of China Limited and ClearBank in early 2017. CHAPS expects to welcome another six to ten institutions by the end of 2018.

Tim Everest, Chief Operating Officer of CHAPS Co, said:

“We have been working closely with the Bank of England, our Participants and key partners to increase direct participation to the CHAPS system. With the number of new Direct Participants rapidly increasing, we are confident that the CHAPS system will continue to provide increasing levels of access and, critically, financial stability to the payments market.”

The CHAPS Market Summary 2017 provides further analysis on CHAPS payments in 2016, and offers insight into who uses the CHAPS service, why they use it and how they have contributed to CHAPS record growth. Key highlights include:

- Volumes and values reached an all-time high, experiencing 39.0 million payments with a value of £75.6 trillion;
- Nearly £300 billion was processed daily, with a peak daily value of £434 billion;
- Interbank use of CHAPS for the highest value payments, particularly corporate treasury, recovered in 2016 compared to the previous year;
- Exceptionally high mergers and acquisitions, mostly arising from large takeover deals agreed in 2015, also contributed to CHAPS value growth in 2016;
- The Brexit-related fall of sterling boosted the UK’s international trade in H2 2016, contributing to the higher-than-expected CHAPS volume growth.

The market summary will be launched at the CHAPS Co Service User Group meeting on 29 June. The user group provides a forum where end users can share their views directly with CHAPS Co, with the purpose of helping to drive positive change and to deliver benefits to the payment ecosystem.

Dr Herta von Stiegel, CHAPS Co Independent Chair, said:
“This summary not only boasts continuing growth in CHAPS’ values, volumes and participation but it also assures CHAPS’ end users that our expert analysis continues to prepare us for changes to the UK payments industry, and economic and political uncertainties. We look forward to discussing some of the key findings from the summary with our stakeholders at the Service User Group meeting.”
Tim Fitzpatrick, Chief Executive of CHAPS Co, added:

“This is an exciting time for CHAPS - the market summary reinforces our position as one of the largest RTGS-settled systems in the world. The expansion over the last two years in direct participation has contributed to CHAPS’ 10% value growth and with further expansion expected, we have an excellent foundation on which to build CHAPS’ future in the evolving payments landscape.”