Bizum Reaches 30 Million Users as It Expands Into In-Store Payments

Bizum is preparing to introduce in-store payments in Spain using a new NFC-based feature called Bizum Pay. The launch is scheduled for 18 May.

The new A2A (account-to-account) real-time payment system is designed to enable NFC contactless payments at physical checkout points by transferring money directly from a customer’s bank account to a merchant’s account through instant transfers.

Until now, Bizum has mainly been used for peer-to-peer payments and online purchases through participating banks’ mobile apps. The system is built on SEPA Instant Credit Transfer (SCT Inst) rails, which enable 24/7 instant payments across Europe.

Up until now, cash has remained the most commonly used payment method for in-store purchases in Spain. According to official data from Banco de España, bank cards account for about 27% of brick-and-mortar payments, while mobile transactions take up only a 15% share. The new in-store payment flow, that might soon change those statistics, bypasses traditional card networks such as Visa and Mastercard by routing payments through bank-to-bank transfers.

Bizum has more than 30 million users (over of total local population) in Spain. It is integrated with 111,000 businesses and around 40 banking institutions. In 2025, the platform processed about 3.4 million instant transfers per day. Its expansion towards physical retail might significantly boost the service usability. On a larger scale, this move is an important step towards local payment sovereignty which is one of the strategic objectives in the EU at present.

The initial rollout of the new feature is limited. It includes banks such as CaixaBank, Banco Sabadell and Bankinter. Additional financial institutions are expected to join the project later in the year.

Bizum is also connected to wider European payment interoperability efforts, including initiatives involving the EuroPA Alliance and other domestic payment systems across Europe. Together with Bancomat (Italy), SIBS‑MB WAY (Portugal), Vipps MobilePay (Nordic region) — all members of the EuroPA Alliance —as well as EPI Company, Bizum signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to accelerate the rollout of interoperable cross‑border payments.

At launch, this initiative is expected to extend across 13 European markets, covering roughly 72 % of the EU’s population plus Norway, and serving approximately 130 million combined users through the interconnected networks of the participating payment solutions. At present, Poland’s BLIK is also considering joining the interoperable network, bringing over 20 million active users to the coverage.

The interoperability work is linked to the broader activity of the European Payments Initiative, which focuses on cross-border connections between national payment schemes.