The use of cross-border instant payments through IRIS Payments has expanded beyond Greece, with the service becoming available internationally at the end of June.
Through the European Payments Alliance (EuroPA), Greek users can now send money instantly using only a recipient’s mobile phone number to customers of equivalent payment services in Spain, Portugal, Italy and Andorra. The initial phase of the rollout covers only person-to-person (P2P) transactions and provides access to a network of 57.3 million European citizens.
According to plans by DIAS Interbanking Systems, the service is expected to expand to 18 European countries, covering around 176 million citizens by the end of the year. From 2027, the platform is also expected to support payments at both online and physical retail stores across Europe.
Transaction limits for free money transfers remain unchanged from those applied in Greece, allowing users to send up to 1,000 euros per day and 5,000 euros per month to private individuals.
A key challenge remains increasing adoption at physical points of sale. Since Dec. 1, 2025, IRIS has been available at all physical retail outlets through POS terminals, with no transaction limit, making Greece the first European country to achieve universal acceptance of account-to-account (A2A) instant payments at every point of sale.
However, Greek Economy and Finance Minister Kyriakos Pierrakakis recently warned that usage levels remain low, noting that only around 55,000 transactions had been recorded. He called for greater visibility of IRIS in stores, rewards programs similar to card cashback schemes, stronger incentives for merchants and the introduction of NFC-based Tap & Pay functionality comparable to the user experience offered by Apple Pay and Google Pay.
Record Growth in 2025
Data for 2025 showed that instant payments continued to gain momentum in Greece, with IRIS reaching record highs in both transaction volume and value.
A total of 122.1 million payments were processed during the year, up 72.8% from 2024, accounting for 27% of all credit transfers. December 2025 marked a monthly record with 15.4 million instant payments, while on Dec. 14 the system processed a peak of 235 transactions per second.
Some 4.3 million users were registered with IRIS, completing 111.4 million transactions during the year.
Transactions involving freelancers and sole proprietors surged by 197% compared with 2024, with 583,445 professionals having adopted the service. E-commerce activity also recorded strong growth, with IRIS available across 1.2 million POS terminals and 70,000 online stores, while transaction volumes rose by 70.8%.
According to DIAS data, the most active users are aged between 25 and 54. Among professionals, lawyers account for the largest number of IRIS registrations, although they are not among the most active users. Psychologists, by contrast, record the highest level of usage of the payment platform.
Για να εμφανίζονται περισσότερα άρθρα της Ναυτεμπορικής στις αναζητήσεις σας εύκολα και γρήγορα, πρέπει να προσθέσετε το site στις προτιμώμενες πηγές σας. Μπορείτε να το κάνετε πηγαίνοντας εδώ.
