37% of global business to business payment cycle is delayed

New global payment data analysis from Sidetrade is showing that late payments now account for 37% of the payment cycle. 

The data shows that businesses took an average of 51 days to get paid in 2025, composed of 32 days of contractual payment terms and 19 days of payment delay.The data indicates that short commercial payment terms alone do not reliably accelerate cash generation.

Country-level disparities are also significant, for example The Netherlands sets a global benchmark at 40 days-to-pay on average, including only 12 days of delay, the lowest worldwide. Whilst India records an average of 77 day-to-pay, driven by 43 days of delay beyond agreed contract terms. That 37-day gap represents cash exposure for multinational enterprises operating across regions.

A 25-day average delay hides the United States story. On average, Financial Services, Insurance, and Real Estate operate at 57 day-to-pay with 27 days of delay, while Manufacturing and HR Services hold delays at 24 days and pay materially faster (54 days and 49 days respectively).

Europe outperforms the United States on payment discipline (18 vs. 29 days of delay), but EU regulation does not equal consistency. The Netherlands sets the global benchmark with Germany, Sweden, Finland, and the Czech Republic close behind (12 -15 days). Spain and parts of Southern and Eastern Europe lag by weeks despite operating under a similar legal framework.

These patterns reinforce that regulation alone does not standardise payment behaviour. Control of Order-to-Cash discipline, at both the industry and enterprise levels, remains decisive.

Germany averages 15 days of delay; ICT and Transport & Logistics underperform relative to the national baseline. Within France, average payment delay stands at 19 days, but ranges from 17 days in Retail and Transport & Logistics to 24 days in HR Services.

The United Kingdom averages 21 days of delay, with Life Sciences and Manufacturing among the slowest.

Mark Sheldon, CTO at Sidetrade, said “Late payments are structural and consistently exceed statutory limits. For policymakers, they offer real-time insight into underlying economic pressures.

“For enterprises, payment delays undermine cash forecasting, inflates accounts receivable costs, and weakens balance-sheet confidence. Renegotiating commercial terms treats the symptom. Controlling the Order-to-Cash cycle addresses the cause.”