RBC first to offer free Interac e-Transfer payments for all personal chequing accounts

TORONTO, May 3, 2016 /CNW/ - Whether splitting the bill, paying the babysitter, or reimbursing a sibling for that awesome Mother's Day gift, Canadians are increasingly using person-to-person payments as part of their daily spending. As a market leader in payment innovation, RBC is making it easier and more cost effective for clients to send money by offering unlimited free Interac e-Transfer payments on all personal chequing accounts.

"Offering free e-Transfers supports our commitment to helping our clients seamlessly and quickly send money how they want and when they want," said Linda Mantia, executive vice-president, Digital, Payments and Cards at RBC. "As clients embrace new technologies and increase their use of mobile we are always looking for ways to provide them with added value and convenience. Taking this leadership role in person-to-person payments will allow us to continue to build client loyalty and maintain strong client relationships."

This decision supports new statistics from Interac that show that the Interac e-Transfer service is growing at 50 per cent per year.

"RBC clearly recognizes the changing nature of payments and that clients are demanding and embracing digital payment options as part of their core banking services," said Mark O'Connell, president and CEO of Interac Association and Acxsys Corporation. "Clients want to be able to easily and securely pay and exchange money using funds in their bank accounts and our payment solutions, like Interac e-Transfer, help financial institutions meet this need."

Canada is an innovator and a world leader in person-to-person payment technology and infrastructure. Close to 100 per cent of consumers who bank online with financial institutions have access to sending or receiving Interac e-Transfer payments.

"RBC's investment in mobile has really accelerated the adoption of person-to-person payments and in 2015 RBC clients sent more than $22 billion in payments between our two person-to-person payment services – far surpassing many incumbents and new entrants in the fintech space," said Mantia. "Today, more than 50 per cent of RBC e-Transfers are sent using a mobile device, which was less than 20 per cent just a couple of years ago. It's not a surprise our clients love RBC person-to-person payments as they are simple, instant and now they are free."

RBC, as a market leader in payment innovation, has a strong history of investing in person-to-person payments and mobile technology.

In 2001, RBC introduced a free RBC client to RBC client payment service.

In 2003, RBC introduced Interac e-Transfer payments.

e-Transfer payments. RBC was one of the first financial institutions in Canada to offer Interac e-Transfer Bulk Disbursement, tailored to enable businesses to send payments to multiple recipients at once.

to offer e-Transfer Bulk Disbursement, tailored to enable businesses to send payments to multiple recipients at once. In 2013, RBC announced its RBC Secure Cloud mobile payments service. The technology, a first in Canada , keeps sensitive customer data secure with RBC in the cloud, not on the phone, making this a safer, faster, more flexible solution.

, keeps sensitive customer data secure with RBC in the cloud, not on the phone, making this a safer, faster, more flexible solution. In 2014, RBC was the first Canadian financial institution to provide clients with the choice of using debit or credit for their mobile payments.

RBC recently rolled out a newly designed RBC Mobile app and RBC Wallet on Android and iPhone. The RBC Wallet on Android gives users convenient access to their payment and gift cards at the point of sale. For iPhone users, the new RBC Wallet provides clients with secure and easy access to their gift cards in one convenient location. Both mobile platforms support seamless, instant Interac e-Transfer payments between customers.

About RBC and Payments Innovation

RBC is at the forefront of payments innovation to the Canadian marketplace. We provide industry-leading mobile banking flexibility and convenience to clients through RBC Mobile Apps - available for Android, BlackBerry, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad and Microsoft - backed by our RBC Online Banking Security Guarantee. Further information about RBC mobile solutions is available at www.rbcroyalbank.com/mobile.

Interac and Interac e-Transfer are registered trade-marks of Interac Inc. Used under license.

SOURCE RBC Royal Bank

For further information: Jeff Lanthier, RBC Communications, 416-903-7388