Ten years after its launch, Bizum in Spain it has recorded 32.5 million users, around 40 payments per second and a cumulative transfer volume of approximately 310 billion euros. According to figures released at the anniversary event, it now reaches around 70 per cent of the adult population. These figures mark the highest level yet of adoption of the instant mobile payment system backed by Spanish banks.
Bizum was founded in 2016 as a joint banking-sector project to make it easy to send money from one mobile phone to another. “The idea was that two people could send each other money using their mobile phones,” said Fernando Rodríguez, Bizum’s Deputy Managing Director for International Expansion, at the tenth-anniversary celebration. An early boost came in 2017 with the introduction of donation features; since then, more than 4.3 million payments have been processed for appeals, including during the pandemic Covid-19 and after the volcanic eruption on La PalmaIn November 2019, it was integrated into E-CommerceBizum can now also increasingly be used at payment terminals, including via NFCAccording to the company, the average amount sent between individuals is now around 55 euros.
This growth is explained by its widespread integration across the banking system, the ease of activation in banking apps and growing acceptance among retailers. According to company statements and industry reports, Bizum had already passed the one-billion-transactions-a-year mark in 2025. Usage so far this year and its expansion into physical retail suggest further growth, although they do not support reliable forecasts of market share or revenue.
Bizum’s next step is to scale up across Europe. The company is working to extend its service beyond Spain. This raises questions about interoperability with other instant payment systems, security and fraud prevention, and fee models for retail payments. The regulatory landscape is also evolving: data protection requirements, strong customer authentication rules and competition law frameworks set the parameters for further expansion. One thing is clear: widespread everyday use, from splitting a restaurant bill to making a donation, has made the service the standard for small and micro-payments in Spain. Whether and how quickly this model will take hold across Europe now depends on technical and institutional solutions that enable integration.
Editor: Daniel Mayer (Article created with AI assistance).