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  • Since the launch of FedNow in July 2023, over 1,800 financial institutions have signed up to participate in the service. Over 96 percent of participants are smaller depository institutions, or those with less than $10 billion in assets. As of July 2026, a total of 1,031 small commercial banks, 129 small savings banks, and 588 small credit unions have adopted FedNow since its inception.
  • While FedNow has sustained momentum for three years following its launch, opportunity remains for the path to ubiquitous payments. Only 20.7 percent of the nearly 8,500 small institutions participate in FedNow. The adoption rate of small commercial banks is highest at 28.6 percent, followed by 24.8 percent of small savings banks and 13.6 percent of small credit unions.
  • Participation by smaller institutions has shown steady growth in adoption at a nearly 30 percent increase year-over-year. Growth was led by small credit unions at a 46.3 percent increase year-over-year, while small commercial and savings banks increased by 20.2 percent and 17.3 percent, respectively.
  • Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City President Jeff Schmid External Linkrecently discussed opportunities to increase FedNow participation by smaller institutions, highlighting that the service “provides a means for institutions to compete effectively while maintaining their approach to trust and customer relationships.” More information on FedNow can be found External Linkhere.

Questions or comments? Please contact KC.SRM.SRA.CommunityBankingBulletin@kc.frb.org

The views expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the positions of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City or the Federal Reserve System.

Author

Stephanie Ziadeh

Senior Manager

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