Corridor runway
Corridor runway is the number of days until a corridor's prefunded balance runs out at the current outflow rate. It counts top-ups already in flight and is an operating metric coined by Polynopsis.
How it works
The calculation is simple. Add the corridor's prefunded balance and its confirmed in-flight top-ups. Divide the total by average daily net outflow. The result is the number of days the corridor can keep paying out without new funding.
Runway turns a balance into a decision. Prefunded money sits idle, so firms try to hold only what they need. Practitioners describe topping up destination accounts in line with transaction volume. The idea mirrors the survival period in bank liquidity supervision: how long a firm can operate without new funds.
Pitfalls include using a long average that hides recent spikes. Another is ignoring weekends and holidays, when top-ups cannot land. Counting unconfirmed top-ups also overstates runway. Compare runway with the time a top-up takes to arrive in each corridor.
Example
Illustrative example: A Nigeria corridor holds ₦300,000,000 at its payout partner, with a ₦150,000,000 top-up in flight. Net daily outflow is ₦112,500,000. Runway is (₦300,000,000 + ₦150,000,000) ÷ ₦112,500,000 = 4.0 days. If a new top-up takes two days to land, the corridor has two days of slack.
Frequently asked questions
Is corridor runway an industry-standard metric?
No. It is a Polynopsis operating term. It builds on standard concepts such as prefunding, outflow forecasting and the survival period used in liquidity supervision.
What runway should we target?
At least the time a top-up takes to arrive, plus a buffer for volatility and non-business days. Corridors with slow settlement or volatile volumes need a longer target. Review targets when volumes or partners change.
Related terms
Sources
- Why is pre-funding required in the money transfer world? · Faisal Khan
- Remitly Global, Inc. Form 10-Q for the quarter ended 30 September 2024 · U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (EDGAR)
- Consultation Paper on Liquidity Buffers and Survival Periods (CP28) · Committee of European Banking Supervisors (hosted by the European Banking Authority)
Know where all your money is.
Polynopsis gives cross-border payment teams one live position across every bank, payout partner, exchange and wallet, including money in flight, and warns before a corridor runs dry.