RBI Joins Project Nexus to Enable Instant Cross-Border Retail Payments
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has been working bilaterally with various countries to link India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI) with their respective Fast Payments Systems (FPS) for cross-border Person to Person (P2P) and Person to Merchant (P2M) payments. While these bilateral connections are beneficial, a multilateral approach could further enhance the international reach of Indian payment systems.
In a significant move, the RBI has now joined Project Nexus, a multilateral international initiative aimed at enabling instant cross-border retail payments by interlinking domestic FPSs. Conceptualized by the Innovation Hub of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), Nexus aims to connect the FPSs of four ASEAN countries—Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand—and India, making them the founding members and first movers of this platform.
An agreement was signed by the BIS and the central banks of the founding countries, namely Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), Bank of Thailand (BOT), Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), and the Reserve Bank of India on June 30, 2024, in Basel, Switzerland. Indonesia, which has been involved since the early stages, continues as a special observer. More details are available in the video and on the BIS website.
The platform, expected to go live by 2026, can be extended to more countries in the future. Once operational, Nexus will play a crucial role in making retail cross-border payments more efficient, faster, and cost-effective.
