Instant cash transfers by mobile number exceeded 1.35 million in number

Instant mobile number transfers have gained popularity in 2024. Whether it’s to split a dinner bill after a night out with friends or to save money for a gift for a work colleague, stats show that 1.35 million so-called instant blink p2p transfers were made in Bulgaria last year. The concept behind them – linking the IBAN to the mobile number and making the transfer in 10 seconds, 24/7/365 – was developed by Borika, which maintains the country’s payment infrastructure.

On a year-on-year basis, comparisons would not be particularly accurate, as the interbank transfers were launched at the end of 2023.

They were developed under the bcard blink brand, part of Borika. The service has become an alternative to the British fintech Revolut in terms of free transfers of small amounts between individuals. As for the UK-registered platform, it already has 1 million customers in Bulgaria, or at least that many have registered in their mobile application.

The convenience of not having to write an IBAN and the lack of fees for instant transfers via mobile number have unlocked their potential over the past year. The number of registered users for the service reached over 900 thousand by November 2024.

Four of the five largest banks in Bulgaria (the only exception is Postbank), as well as the Bulgarian Central Cooperative Bank, Investbank and tbi bank, are participating in this service.

Its potential remains high, considering that mobile banking is used by about 2.7 million users in Bulgaria. UniCredit's mobile app, for example, is used by about 700 thousand users, which means there is room for growth. The reason why a large number of the clients have not yet registered for it is the perception that the service is only offered for intra-bank transfers. Nevertheless, the forecast is that by the end of 2025, the number of users will exceed 1.3 million.

Bcard blink attributes last year's growth to the marketing campaign they ran, which included TV commercials and a game with prizes.

Fees in 2025

However, 2025 has already seen the introduction of mobile number transfer fees by some banks. Until the end of last year, the fee policy was generalized - no fees for transfers up to 100 leva. Now, however, fees are charged according to the tariffs of the individual banks.

A survey by Economic.bg shows that there are still banks that offer fast transfers to a mobile number free of charge. DSK and tbi bank continue to provide the service without fees, regardless of the transfer amount. At UBB, the free limit is 100 leva, and at Central Cooperative Bank (CCB) – it’s 300 leva.

However, UniCredit Bulbank charges a fee of 0.70 leva for an instant mobile number transfer for intrabank transfers and 1.20 leva for interbank ones.

First Investment Bank (FIB) also charges a fee for transfers – 0.5 leva for an intrabank transfer and 1 leva for an interbank transfer.

Investbank also charges a fee - 1.50 BGN for both intrabank and interbank transfers.

Instant transfers in euros

Since December 2024, there have also been two banks offering instant transfers in euros - 24/7/365. These are the First Investment Bank and Central Cooperative Bank, as well as the MyFin platform (owned by FIB). Intra-bank transfers are possible between the two banks and to banks in the European Union. Their advantage is the fast transfer – again within ten seconds at any time, as well as lower fees.

In just less than a month – by the end of 2024 – 50 thousand instant transfers in euros had been made by the three financial institutions.

Translated by Tzvetozar Vincent Iolov