RTGS (Real Time Gross Settlement)
RTGSA continuous gross-settlement system in which interbank transfers are settled individually and irrevocably in central-bank money the moment they are processed, used in India for transfers of ₹2 lakh and above.
Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) is the settlement model where each transaction is settled individually (gross), in real time, and with finality — as opposed to deferred-net systems like NEFT which net positions in batches. India's RTGS is operated by the RBI and has a minimum transaction value of ₹2 lakh.
Because each RTGS transfer is settled individually, the bank statement entry timestamp is essentially the same as the originator's initiation time, and each transfer carries its own UTR. This makes RTGS the simplest interbank rail to reconcile: gateway-to-bank matching is effectively one-to-one on UTR with no batching ambiguity.
India migrated RTGS messaging from a proprietary format to ISO 20022 in 2024, replacing the legacy MT-equivalent payload with pacs.008 customer credit transfer messages. The migration introduces structured remittance data, but reconciliation systems must now handle both pre- and post-migration historical files.