Launch of Electronic Deferred Payment (EDP & EDP+)

On July 28–30, 2025, the Association of Banks in Singapore (ABS), in partnership with MAS, officially rolled out two e‑payment innovations—Electronic Deferred Payment (EDP) and its enhanced variant EDP+. These aim to phase out corporate cheque use by the end of 2026, as Singapore pushes ahead in modernising its payments framework 

EDP and EDP+ are now available on the digital banking platforms of the seven Domestic Systemically Important Banks (D‑SIBs):

• DBS
• OCBC
• UOB
• HSBC
• Maybank Singapore
• Standard Chartered
• Citibank Singapore 

What are EDP and EDP+ designed for?

These solutions replicate the primary deferred-payment use cases previously fulfilled by post‑dated cheques or cashier’s orders:

• Supplier payments and project tender deposits

• Rental payments, balloting or property purchase options deposits

• Any scenario where funds are committed in advance but released later

They integrate with Singapore’s existing e-payments ecosystem—PayNow, FAST, GIRO, MEPS+—leveraging PayNow for seamless payer-payee identification via mobile number, NRIC/FIN, UEN, or bank account number 

Both payer and payee receive real-time status notifications and full traceability—visibility of when and why funds move, and between whom 

EDP vs EDP+: Key distinctions

• EDP: A digital analog to post‑dated cheques. Funds are only removed from payer’s account at presentment, offering flexibility but some payment risk 

• EDP+: A digital equivalent to a cashier’s order. Funds are locked immediately at issuance, reducing default risk and offering greater assurance to payees 

Timeline for cheque phase‑out

Retail cheques, USD cheques, and cashier’s orders will remain available for individuals and certain corporate uses beyond this date

Why this matters for Singapore’s finance ecosystem

1. Operational efficiency
   EDP/EDP+ eliminates manual cheques and reconciliation overheads, cutting down administrative friction and errors

2. Improved payment assurance
   EDP+ provides payees with payment certainty, mitigating risks linked to bounced or post‑dated instruments.

3. Traceability & auditability
   Real-time updates build stronger financial governance—useful for corporate treasury, finance, and accounting teams.

4. Sustainability
   Less paper, fewer physical instruments, lower carbon footprint.

5. Policy alignment
   This builds on MAS’s forward roadmap to shift from legacy cheque infrastructure to a resilient, digital-first national payments architecture—including plans for CTS Lite in early 2027 for remaining retail/US dollar cheque volumes

What you should know or prepare

• Businesses and property players: Begin mapping deferred‑payment use cases (e.g. tender deposits, rentals) to EDP or EDP+, with clear internal processes around issuance vs presentment timing.

• SMEs and finance teams: Equip accounting/payment workflows to reconcile EDP/EDP+ using ERP or banking APIs; explore setting alerts via platforms like DBS IDEAL or OCBC Velocity 

• Cash flow planning: If using EDP+, ensure liquidity management accounts for funds locked at issuance rather than timing of presentment.

• Education & outreach: Especially for senior staff accustomed to cheques, ensure training and awareness of the new tools. Public campaigns and bank outreach will support this transition 

Conclusion: A digital leap forward

The launch of EDP and EDP+ signals a major step in Singapore’s evolution toward a paper‑light, digitally enabled payments ecosystem. For finance leaders and practitioners, timely adoption of these solutions is key to staying ahead of MAS deadlines—ending SGD corporate cheque issuance by year-end 2025 and processing by year-end 2026.

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This is an AI-powered article, curated by The Financial Coconut.

Sources consulted:

1. Technode Global, 'Singapore Launches New Electronic Deferred Payment Solutions to Support Transition to E-Payments'

2. Asian Banking & Finance, 'Singapore Launches Electronic Deferred Payments to Ease Cheque Phase-Out'

3. Pymnts.com, 'Singapore Deploys Tools to Wean Businesses off Checks'

4. Rajahtann Asia, 'MAS Roadmap to Cease Use of SGD Corporate Cheques and Digital Payment Solutions for Post-Dated Payments'

5. DBS, 'Electronic Deferred Payment'

6. News.Futunn.com, 'Singapore Launches Electronic Deferred Payment Solutions'

7. Allen & Gledhill, 'MAS Consults on Roadmap to Sunset Corporate Cheques and Transition Plan for Retail Cheques'