Mandatory acceptance of instant payments by all retail businesses (from the smallest store to the largest chain), complementing card payments, will take effect from November 1st. Greece is ready for a radical transformation of the digital payments landscape, with instant payments that consumers can make through the national payment system IRIS expanding from the above date – with no extension – to all physical and online stores. The next step in instant payments through IRIS will be increasing the limits on transactions, expected in January 2026. Today, citizens can make free money transfers to friends (P2P) or to freelancers (P2B) up to 500 euros daily, while the amount of instant payments to legal entities (IRIS Commerce) is unlimited. From January, the above limits of 500 euros will increase to 1,000 euros daily, with a ceiling of 5,000 euros monthly for P2P money transfers.
The new instant payment capability will be provided by the country’s interbank payment system, IRIS, operated by DIAS S.A., which has already found great response in Greek society for instant money transfers between friends (IRIS P2P), from individuals to freelancers (P2B) and payments to online stores (IRIS commerce). In 2024, a total of 467.2 million transactions (+15% from 2023) were processed through the DIAS Payment System, with a total value of 501.9 billion euros, meaning 1.9 million daily transactions worth 2 billion euros. Of the 467.2 million transactions, 83.6% (390.4 million transactions) were credit transfers (bank credit transfers, instant credit transfers, business/organization receipts and payments).
COMPARISONS
The instant payments subcategory, IRIS P2P (instant payments between individuals) recorded 49.3 million instant credit transfers between friends, showing an increase of 142.4% compared to 2023 (64 times more transactions compared to 2020). In December 2024, registered users in IRIS P2P reached 3.4 million, marking a 56.4% increase compared to 2023 (users increased sixfold compared to January 2020). The IRIS P2B service at the end of 2024 counted 557,281 registered professionals, eleven times more than in 2020, with their transactions increasing by 844% compared to 2023 (116 times more transactions compared to 2020). Additionally, 37% (173.3 million) of transactions processed through the DIAS Payment System in 2024 were business and organization receipts, which increased by 13.5% compared to 2023.
Notable was also the increase in transactions through IRIS eCommerce (+94% compared to 2023 and nine times more than 2020). The number of merchants using IRIS eCommerce in their e-shops increased in 2024 by 46 times compared to 2020. Instant payments are completely free for consumers. For businesses, it’s an additional payment method that provides significantly lower charges compared to credit cards. Today, more than 565 thousand freelancers use the IRIS P2B service, a figure approaching the absolute total of the market. 8,000 businesses/e-shops have joined IRIS Commerce, however an explosive increase in this number is expected by the end of the year, after the November 1st milestone and the mandatory acceptance of instant payments by all retail businesses.
Published in Parapolitika
