More banks add real-time P2P (WFC, JPM, BAC, USB)

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Capital One, Chase, and Wells Fargo will be the next banks to grant customers access to digital real-time peer-to-peer (P2P) transfers through clearXchange.

Chase customers will be immediately able to send and receive money in real-time, while Capital One will allow a select group of customers to receive funds, with plans to add send functionality and broaden the service to all account holders in the coming months. Wells Fargo customers can receive funds, but not in real-time, with a full rollout planned this summer.

The firms join Bank of America and US Bank in offering the service, which allows users to make P2P transfers to account holders at participating financial institutions.

This broadens clearXchange’s potential user base, which could help increase its chances of success. clearXchange is housed within banks’ existing mobile or online banking services, which eliminates the need for users to download an additional app and gives them access to real-time P2P in a location that they’re already visiting.

The addition of these new banks, which have broad digital baking user bases, means that over 100 million online and 70 million mobile banking users have access to the service. P2P networks thrive from network effects — when one person uses a P2P app to make a payment, he contacts another person to receive, who is then brought into the fold and can continue to refer additional users and expand the network. 

By adding more banks, there are more potential users who can be referred to the service, which could help kickstart the network effect and accelerate usage.

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