TARGET Instant Payment Settlement
TIPSACTIVEOperator: Eurosystem (Banca d'Italia lead development)
Overseer: European Central Bank (ECB)
Legal basis: ECB Guideline on TARGET (ECB/2022/8)
Launched: Nov 30, 2018
14,884 reachable parties; 323 DCAs, 12 ASTAs (euro); 341 total DCAs+ASTAs (EUR+SEK, Dec 2024)
Participants
Dec 31, 2024 · ECB TARGET Services Annual Report 2024
Executive Summary
TARGET Instant Payment Settlement (TIPS) is the Eurosystem's platform for settling instant payments in central bank money, operating 24/7/365. Launched in November 2018, TIPS settles SCT Inst transactions individually in seconds across the SEPA area. It supports three currencies: EUR (since launch), SEK (since February 2024), and DKK (since April 2025), with NOK planned for H1 2028 (Norges Bank agreement signed November 29, 2024; NBO INST to serve as the domestic NOK instant payment service; Norway is the first non-EU EEA country to join a TARGET Service). Bulgaria (BNB) connected January 1, 2026. Iceland's Sedlabanki Islands is assessing feasibility of joining TIPS for ISK settlement (announced September 2024, assessment initially focused on TIPS before T2).
How It Works
Settlement Model
Real-Time Gross Settlement (individual transaction settlement)
Message Standard
ISO 20022 — pacs.008 (routed from CSMs or direct participants)
Max Transaction
€999,999,999.99 (per EPC 2025 SCT Inst Rulebook v1.0, effective October 5, 2025; previously €100,000)
Clearing Mechanism
Direct settlement — TIPS is itself the settlement mechanism. No separate clearing layer.
Settlement Cycle
Continuous 24/7/365 — no batch windows, no cut-off times
Message Flow
An instant payment instruction arrives at TIPS either directly from a participant or via a CSM (RT1, STEP2-T, or national systems). TIPS checks the sender's Dedicated Cash Account (DCA) for sufficient funds. If available, the sender's DCA is debited and the receiver's DCA is credited simultaneously with immediate finality. The entire process targets under 10 seconds end-to-end. Liquidity is managed by transferring funds between the DCA and the participant's Main Cash Account in T2.
Typical Use Cases
Settlement of SEPA Instant Credit Transfers, multi-currency instant settlement (EUR, SEK, DKK), future cross-border instant payment corridors
Key Data
Participants
14,884 reachable parties; 323 DCAs, 12 ASTAs (euro); 341 total DCAs+ASTAs (EUR+SEK, Dec 2024)
As of Dec 31, 2024 · ECB TARGET Services Annual Report 2024
Participants & Access
Membership Requirements
Credit institutions with Eurosystem counterparty status. Also accessible via instructing parties (CSMs like RT1, STEP2-T). Non-euro NCBs may join for their domestic currency.
Governance & Risk
Governance Model
Part of the TARGET platform, governed by ECB Guideline. Banca d'Italia led initial development. Multi-currency governance involves non-euro NCBs (Riksbank for SEK, Danmarks Nationalbank for DKK).
Concentration Risk
TIPS is becoming the dominant instant settlement infrastructure as the ECB promotes central bank money settlement. However, RT1 and STEP2-T provide CSM-level alternatives for clearing, maintaining some competition.
Resilience & Business Continuity
Eurosystem infrastructure with dual-site architecture. 24/7 operations centre. Target availability: 99.99%. Fallback to standard SCT if instant path fails.
Dispute Resolution
TARGET compensation scheme applies. Operational disputes follow ECB procedures.
Pricing
ECB pricing for TIPS is designed to encourage adoption of central bank money settlement for instant payments.
Transaction fee: €0.002 per transaction
Source: European Central Bank
Connectivity
settles
SEPA Inst
TIPS settles SCT Inst transactions in central bank money
liquidity from
T2 / TARGET
Dedicated Cash Accounts funded from T2 Main Cash Accounts
interlinks with
RT1
RT1 routes transactions to TIPS for central bank money settlement
settles
RIX-INST
TIPS settles Swedish instant payments (SEK) via RIX-INST
Peer Comparison
TIPS is unique as a multi-currency instant settlement system in central bank money. FedNow settles in Fed funds (central bank money) but is USD-only. UK Faster Payments settles in commercial bank money via prefunding. TIPS's €0.002 per-transaction pricing significantly undercuts private CSMs.
Compare in detail →Regulatory Framework
275dDec 31, 2026
Digital euro preparation phase
ECB preparation phase for digital euro with concrete pilot timeline disclosed March 2026. Regulation proposed June 2023, awaiting European Parliament and Council adoption. Pilot launch planned H2 2027 on TIPS infrastructure, with potential first issuance by 2029. Pontes DLT wholesale settlement launching Q3 2026.
Intelligence (59)
NewsMar 28, 2026
Global Payments Brings Worldpay Merchant Network into European Payments Initiative
Europe's largest independent acquirer joining EPI as a Principal Member gives the Wero payment scheme its first direct path to physical and online merchant checkout, addressing the critical gap between consumer adoption and point-of-sale acceptance.
AnalysisMar 28, 2026
Euro Area Instant Credit Transfer Share Reaches 23 Percent as Sending Mandate Reshapes Volumes
The seven-percentage-point gain in instant credit transfer market share between H1 2024 and H1 2025 reflects early effects of the EU sending mandate, but the persistent gap between 23 percent volume share and 7 percent value share signals that corporate treasury flows remain on standard rails.
AnalysisMar 28, 2026
France Assembles Merchant Pipeline for Wero E-Commerce as H1 2026 Target Window Narrows
Six merchants including Air France, E.Leclerc, and Orange have signed Wero agreements, nine banks provide 90 percent French account coverage, and the national tax authority DGFIP has stated its intention to adopt Wero for public invoices. The specific launch date remains unconfirmed as EPI's original H1 2026 target approaches.
AnalysisMar 28, 2026
Easter 2026 Tests Post-Mandate Instant Payment Capacity as TARGET Closes for Four Days
TARGET T2, EURO1, and STEP2-T will close for Good Friday and Easter Monday on April 3 and 6, while RT1 and TIPS continue 24/7 instant settlement through the four-day window at their current combined rate of over 10 million daily transactions. With six months of IPR sending mandate compliance behind the market, the Easter period offers a practical measure of how effectively instant rails now absorb payment flows that previously depended on batch settlement schedules.
NewsMar 27, 2026
ECB Targets Summer 2026 for Digital Euro Technical Standards as Twelve-Month Pilot Takes Shape
The ECB plans to release the digital euro technical rulebook this summer so terminal manufacturers and payment developers can build infrastructure before EU legislation passes, followed by a twelve-month pilot in the second half of 2027 and potential issuance around 2029.
NewsMar 26, 2026
Eurosystem Accepts DLT-Issued Collateral from March 30 as Appia Roadmap Charts Path to Integrated Tokenised Market
From March 30, tokenised securities issued through DLT-enabled CSDs and settled via T2S become eligible as Eurosystem collateral. The ECB's Appia roadmap, published March 11, targets a fully integrated European tokenised market infrastructure by 2028, with the Pontes DLT settlement bridge scheduled for Q3 2026.
NewsMar 26, 2026
Trump Administration Fears Drive New Merchant Interest in Wero as EPI Reaches 45 Members
EPI CEO Martina Weimert told Reuters that two major merchants adopted Wero specifically for international resilience, as the initiative reaches 45 scheme members and 52.5 million users. Weimert also expressed concern that the ECB's digital euro may not arrive before 2029, leaving private-sector solutions to fill the European payment sovereignty gap.
AnalysisMar 26, 2026
Vipps MobilePay Sells Checkout Business to Kustom in NOK 490 Million Deal, Sharpening Wallet Strategy
Vipps MobilePay is divesting its owned checkout layer to Kustom, the former Klarna Checkout business, for up to NOK 490 million while entering a distribution partnership that keeps Vipps products available through Kustom's merchant base. The deal reflects a broader European trend toward specialization between wallet providers and checkout infrastructure operators, with implications for Nordic e-commerce competition and merchant integration complexity.
AnalysisMar 25, 2026
LBTR Chile at 20: Banco Central Opens Access to Non-Banks and Adds USD Settlement Subsystem
Chile's Banco Central is undertaking its most significant RTGS modernization since the LBTR's 2004 launch, with a public consultation on expanding participant access to non-bank financial entities and new regulation creating a USD-denominated interbank settlement subsystem, reflecting regional trends toward broader central bank money access.
AnalysisMar 25, 2026
Wero's Coverage-First Strategy: How 90 Percent Bank Account Reach Sets the Stage for E-Commerce Growth
With 84 to 90 percent of bank accounts in Germany, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg already Wero-compatible, the European Payments Initiative's bank-embedded growth model mirrors the approach that made iDEAL leading in Dutch e-commerce and positions Wero for rapid activation as e-commerce functionality expands across markets in 2026.
Reference Documents (2)
TARGET Operating Schedule
ECB · operating_schedule · v2026 · Jan 1, 2026
CBPR+ Roadmap Beyond November 2025
SWIFT · regulatory_text · vSeptember 2025 · Nov 15, 2026
SEPA Credit TransferSCT
European Payments Council (EPC)
SEPA Direct Debit CoreSDD Core
European Payments Council (EPC)
SEPA Direct Debit Business-to-BusinessSDD B2B
European Payments Council (EPC)
SEPA Instant Credit TransferSCT Inst
European Payments Council (EPC)
TARGET Ecosystem OverviewTARGET
Eurosystem (4CB platform: Deutsche Bundesbank, Banque de France, Banca d'Italia, Banco de España)
T2 (TARGET RTGS)T2
Eurosystem (4CB platform: Deutsche Bundesbank, Banque de France, Banca d'Italia, Banco de España)
TARGET2-SecuritiesT2S
Eurosystem (4CB platform)
Eurosystem Collateral Management SystemECMS
Eurosystem (Banque de France lead development)
UK Payment InfrastructureUK Payments
Pay.UK (scheme management), Bank of England (RTGS), VocaLink/Mastercard (processing)