Imagine a world where international payments are as seamless, secure, and instant as domestic transactionsTransactions transactions Interactions where value is exchanged for goods or services.. That’s the bold promise of Nexus Global Payments (NGP) — a pioneering initiative led by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) in collaboration with central banks across Asia and Europe.
🌎 What Is Nexus?
Nexus is a framework designed to connect domestic Instant Payment Systems (IPS) across borders. Instead of building slow, expensive bilateral corridors, Nexus creates a scalable multilateral model that allows any country’s IPS to link into a single global network.
The result? Real-time cross-border payments, without the need for intermediaries or holding funds across jurisdictions.
🔑 Strategic Goals
✅ Global Connectivity
Nexus eliminates the complexity of building one-to-one payment corridors by offering a hub-and-spoke multilateral model — like the SWIFT network, but for instant payments.
✅ Standardization
Using common APIs and ISO 20022 messaging standards, Nexus ensures that participating IPS can exchange payment data smoothly, accurately, and in real-time.
✅ Operational Efficiency
Nexus does not settle funds or maintain ledgers. Instead, it coordinates two linked instant payments between sender and receiver IPS — a revolutionary approach that maintains the autonomy of each domestic system while still delivering real-time results.
🔍 Key Milestones in Nexus Development
| Phase | Timeline | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Blueprint | July 2021 | Conceptual model released, defining how to link national IPS and enable near-instant international transfers. |
| 2. Technical Proof of Concept | March 2023 | Demonstrated feasibility with participation from Eurosystem, Malaysia, and Singapore. |
| 3. Comprehensive Blueprint | July 2024 | Detailed playbook delivered, standardizing the path for any country to join the Nexus network. |
🏗️ Governance & Architecture
🔹 Nexus Global Payments (NGP)
A not-for-profit entity based in Singapore, tasked with managing and operating the Nexus scheme, under the guidance of the Nexus Scheme Organisation (NSO).
🔹 Nexus Technical Operator (NTO)
Currently under procurement, this entity will be responsible for building and maintaining Nexus software and infrastructure, and overseeing day-to-day operations.
🔹 Founding Central Banks
- 🇮🇳 Reserve Bank of India (RBI)
- 🇲🇾 Bank Negara Malaysia
- 🇵🇭 Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas
- 🇸🇬 Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS)
- 🇹🇭 Bank of Thailand
These institutions are leading the way toward a new standard for international payments — faster, cheaper, and more accessible for all.
🌐 The Global Impact of Nexus
Nexus doesn’t just improve payment speed. It tackles core frictions in the cross-border ecosystem:
- 🕓 Delays due to time zone and banking hour mismatches
- 💰 High fees from intermediaries and FX spreads
- 🧾 Limited transparency and traceability
- ❌ Fragmented standards across countries
With Nexus, the path to a borderless, real-time financial world is more achievable than ever.
Vibhu Arya is a fintechFintech fintech
Short for financial technology, refers to tech-enabled innovation in financial services. and payments expert with 15+ years of experience simplifying how money moves across digital and retail ecosystems. He’s led strategy and partnerships at Citibank, Adyen, and IKEA, and helped scale fintech startups (Snapdeal, iPaylinks) to $1B+ valuations. Vibhu’s expertise spans cards, crypto, cross-border, and real-time payments. He is the founder of PaymentsPedia.com, where he writes about the future of payments.
📧 vibhu@paymentspedia.com | LinkedIn