What defines a high-value payment?

A high-value payment is characterized primarily by its urgency and significant monetary value. These payments typically involve large sums of money and are usually time-sensitive, requiring immediate processing to facilitate transactions such as business acquisitions, large real estate deals, or major capital expenditures. The critical nature of these transactions often leads to the use of specialized payment systems and methods that can accommodate the quick processing requirements, such as real-time gross settlement systems.

The other options do not align with the definition of a high-value payment. For instance, payments that can take several days to process do not reflect the urgency generally associated with high-value transactions. Similarly, payments involving small amounts are not categorized as high-value. Lastly, while cash can be used for various types of payments, high-value payments are typically processed through electronic and bank-managed methods rather than being exclusively cash-based. Thus, the focus on urgency and significant value makes option C the correct definition of a high-value payment.