Canadian retail payments reached $12.9 trillion across 26.7 billion transactions in 2025, as new Payments Canada research points to growing interest in faster ways to move money.
The organization’s annual Canadian Payment Methods and Trends report, released today, shows payment value increased 5.7 per cent from 2024. It also found that 52 per cent of Canadians find real-time payments appealing.
The findings arrive as Payments Canada prepares to launch its Real-Time Rail in the fourth quarter of 2026. The infrastructure will support instant, data-rich payments around the clock.
For businesses, faster settlement could address a persistent challenge: 37 per cent of small and medium-sized enterprises identify payment delays as a significant pain point. Potential applications include gig worker payouts, immediate loan funding and supplier payments.
Credit and debit cards remained dominant, accounting for 68 per cent of transaction volume, while electronic funds transfers represented 63 per cent of payment value.
Canadians were less enthusiastic about AI-driven shopping. Just 24 per cent found agentic commerce appealing, with concerns including data security, unpredictable purchasing decisions and fraud liability.
Leave a Reply