Tracing the Impact of Payment Convenience on Deposits: Evidence from Depositor Activeness

Xu Lu, Yang Song and Yao Zeng

No 35638, NBER Working Papers from National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc

Abstract: How slow are bank transfers, and how do transfer delays affect deposit demand? Using transaction-level data from millions of depositors, we measure transfer delays by matching debits and credits across accounts held by the same depositor. Shorter delays correlate with more transfers and lower balances. Exploiting county-level exposure to Zelle’s staggered rollout, we find that faster payments reduce delays and deposit growth. Calibrating a deposit-management model, we find that transfer delays raise deposit demand, and the magnitude of this effect varies with interest rates and consumption volatility. Payment frictions therefore shape transactional deposit demand and monetary transmission.

JEL-codes: E41 E42 E52 E58 G21 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026-08
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-cba, nep-mon and nep-pay
Note: AP CF ME
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