A new industry survey from Volante Technologies has revealed that nearly all banks across EMEA plan to replace at least one existing payments system.
Over half of respondents expect to make these changes within the next six months, underscoring growing pressure to modernise payment infrastructure.
The findings are part of The Big Survey 2025: Modernising Payments, the fifth annual report by Volante Technologies. The research, conducted in May 2025 across 11 countries in the region, collected responses from senior banking officials involved in corporate and transaction banking, including payment technology selection.
According to the report, 99% of surveyed banks have firm plans to implement new payment solutions over the next 12 months. A significant portion (52%) expect to act within six months. At the same time, budget allocations for such initiatives appear to be growing. On average, EMEA banks are planning to spend around USD 1.42 million on payment modernisation within the year, with nearly half (49%) reporting budget increases compared to the previous 12 months.
Operational resilience and cost cited as main drivers
While regulatory deadlines such as SEPA Instant Payments and SWIFT ISO 20022 are approaching in 2025, the most frequently cited external motivations for modernisation were cost efficiency and operational resilience. These were followed by pressure from fintech competitors and rising expectations for real-time capabilities from customers.
The survey also highlighted that many banks are still operating with ageing systems. Approximately 27% continue to rely on legacy technologies for payment processing, either using long-standing vendor solutions or internally developed infrastructure dating back five to ten years or more.
The path to cloud adoption remains mixed. A majority of banks (58%) reported using a hybrid model that combines cloud and on-premises infrastructure. Another 25% are still evaluating cloud options but remain primarily reliant on on-premise systems.
Despite growing urgency, concerns persist about the implementation process. Roughly a third of banks identified potential disruption as a key risk, while another third expressed concern over whether their organisations have the necessary internal skills and knowledge to manage a large-scale transition.
