Doha, Qatar: The Qatar Central Bank’s Real Time Gross Settlement System (RTGS) settled around 497 million large value electronic transactions worth QR10.26 trillion on a gross basis in last year, QCB revealed in its latest Financial Stability Review 2025.
In addition, RTGS settled batches of net interbank obligations arising from other payment systems and large value cheques on a gross basis, it noted.
The Real-Time Gross Settlement System (QA-RTGS) operated by the QCB is a centralised system for immediate, aggregate, and interbank financial transactions in Qatar.
It serves as a settlement point for all retail payment systems in the country, utilising central accounts linked to bank balances with the QCB, and also settles financial instrument operations, including public debt (government bonds and sukuk) and QCB bonds and sukuk.
In December 2025, the QCB announced the activation of foreign currency transfer services through the Real Time Gross Settlement System between local banks. This activation enables both Qatari Riyal and foreign currency transactions to be processed and settled locally with greater efficiency and flexibility.
In recent years, the retail payment ecosystem has continued to evolve, reflecting shifts in consumer behaviour, advancements in technology, and the growing adoption of digital payment solutions.
The total value of payments across all retail payment systems increased by 82.1%, to reach QR1051.8bn in 2025. With total transaction volume of 352.3 million showing increase of 23.7% for the year 2025, reflecting broader adoption of electronic payment channels.
The report said that the overall increase in the total value of payment system can be primarily attributed to the Direct Deposit and Debit System (Tahweel) system which carries the largest share of the increase in payment systems value.
The increase in the total volume of payment systems was mainly due to the increase in National Network System for ATMs and Points of Sale (NAPS) transaction volume.
On the other hand, Electronic Cheque Clearing System (ECC) transactions value has increased by 1.1% while the transactions volume has slightly increased by 1.90%, indicating a relatively stable and mature usage pattern rather than accelerated growth. This suggests a gradual shift away from traditional paper- based payment instruments.
Qatar Mobile Payment system rose in value by 69.05% and 110.53% in transactions volume, reflecting the continued diversification of payment channels and the growing adoption of digital payment solutions.
NAPS accounted for the largest share of total transaction volume in 2025 at 83.8% (295.3 out of 352.3 million transactions. However, its share declined from 90.2% in 2024, indicating a gradual redistribution of transaction volumes across alternative electronic payment channels.
This decline reflects the increasing adoption of instant payments through Fawran, as well as the growing utilisation of Mobile Payment System (QMP) and Tahweel, which collectively contributed to the diversification of payment channels and reduced reliance on traditional card-based and ATM transactions.
The distribution of card payment transactions across different channels shows a slight shift in usage patterns between 2024 and 2025. In terms of transactions volume, POS held the largest share in both years which grew from 79% in 2024 to 81% in 2025, reflecting the widespread use for everyday purchases, the review noted.
On the other hand, ATM transactions while still significant has dropped by 4 percentage points from 16% to 12% in last year, which indicates a trend towards less withdrawals as digital payments become more common.
When looking at transaction value, ATM accounted for the highest shares in both years. However, in 2025 the value shares of point-of-sale (POS) and Electronic Payment Gateway (QPay) increased for both channels.
It further stated that consistent growth was observed in Instant payments system (Fawran) usage during last year. Fawran transactions volume grew at a monthly average of 13% during 2025 to almost a total of 22.8 million transactions, while the value grew at a monthly average of 12% with total QR37.3bn by the end of the year, reflecting an increasing adoption of digital payments within the country.
