RBI and ASEAN collaborate on cross-border retail payments

On July 1, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced that it has worked together with different countries to connect India's Fast Payments System (FPS) - the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), with their FPSs for international Person to Person (P2P) and Person to Merchant (P2M) transactions.

The central bank announced its participation in Project Nexus, a multinational effort allowing immediate cross-border retail payments by connecting domestic FPSs.

RBI stated in a release that Nexus, created by the Innovation Hub of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), is designed to link the FPSs of four ASEAN countries (Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand) as well as India, which are set to be the platform's inaugural members and pioneers.

On June 30, the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) and central banks of founding countries such as Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), Bank of Thailand (BOT), Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), and Reserve Bank of India, signed an agreement for this, as per the release.

In the future, the platform will expand to additional countries. The release mentioned that the platform is anticipated to be launched by 2026.