On 10 August, UK Finance submitted its response to the Bank of England’s consultation on extending RTGS and CHAPS settlement hours, which sets out the Bank’s proposed direction for moving RTGS and CHAPS, the systems that underpin settlement of high-value sterling payments toward 24x7 operation.

UK Finance members fully endorse extending RTGS and CHAPS settlement hours, recognising the strategic importance for digital money innovation, to improve cross-border payments and for UK competitiveness. However, our response makes clear that decisions on the transition stages and the end state must be underpinned by evidence from other jurisdictions and the September 2027 early morning CHAPS extension and supported by ongoing dialogue between the Bank and the industry.

RTGS and CHAPS sit at the core of the UK’s payments infrastructure and changes to their operating hours will require firms to make investment decisions across several interconnected areas.

In recognition of the wide-ranging implications, UK Finance, supported by PwC, stepped through cross-sectoral engagement including a deep dive workshop and detailed discussions with members from across our policy areas, including payments, operational risk and resilience, international interoperability and digital assets, supported by analysis of examples from other jurisdictions that have already adopted 24/7 settlement hours. 

Drivers for near 24/7 settlement: digital money and cross-border payments

The growth of tokenised deposits, digital bonds and other assets is expected to drive future demand for extended hours, given that near-continuous settlement capability will play an important role in unlocking their value.

As a result, UK Finance members propose the Bank considers a modular approach, enabling near 24/7 settlement for specific digital and tokenised money use cases ahead of the full long-term operating model. This could enable the broader market to transition at an appropriate pace without restricting innovation in the digital money landscape. 

Extending settlement hours could also support the UK’s commitment to the G20 Roadmap for cross-border payments by increasing the overlap in RTGS operating hours across jurisdictions. Greater alignment could help reduce unhelpful payment frictions, making cross-border transactions faster, cheaper and more accessible, while strengthening the UK’s competitiveness.

Managing the transition: liquidity, optionality and operational resilience requirements

The progression towards near 24/7 will require careful management by the Bank and by the industry. Liquidity will be a key challenge, requiring the Bank and the PRA to engage firms early on funding facilities, regulatory reporting and stress assumptions. While members are supportive of the Bank’s proposed optionality, the implications of not all direct participants taking part needs to be fully considered and must be carefully designed. A mixed participation framework could avoid disproportionate costs for smaller firms, but it must not undermine market liquidity, network effects or settlement certainty.

Operational resilience is another key consideration. Longer operating hours would reduce time available for maintenance, patching, and incident recovery, making clear maintenance windows, robust contingency planning and Bank support arrangements essential.

Next steps

UK Finance’s response makes clear that extending RTGS and CHAPS settlement hours is an important step in supporting innovation and UK competitiveness. Realising those benefits, however, will depend on an evidence-led transition, informed by lessons from the September 2027 early morning extension and other jurisdictions and developed in close coordination with the Bank, regulators and industry to manage the operational and liquidity implications.

This work also connects to the wider strategic conversation around the future of the UK’s core retail payments infrastructure, which UK Finance is considering through its response to the Retail Payments Infrastructure Board (RPIB) consultation on the Design of the Future Retail Payments Infrastructure.

You can read the UK Finance response.