The Eurosystem launched Pontes for tokenised asset settlement using central bank money, while Partior and LSEG DiSH developed a multi-bank liquidity framework for cross-border payments. HSBC also implemented cross-border cash pooling services following China’s nationwide expansion of a new liquidity management framework.

Elsewhere, banks and development institutions expanded trade, agricultural and MSME finance, while developments in Europe and India addressed digital payment acceptance and funding models.

Read more on the week’s key developments

1. Partior and LSEG DiSH create multi-settlement bank liquidity framework for 24/7 cross-border payments

Partior and LSEG Digital Settlement House (DiSH) announced a collaboration on 17 September to develop a multi-settlement bank solution for always-on settlement liquidity across Partior’s cross-border payments network. The framework combines Partior’s multi-currency clearing and settlement network with LSEG DiSH’s omnibus trust account structure, allowing banks to manage liquidity across multiple settlement banks without separate bilateral nostro relationships. Industry testing is under way, with production go-live and broader onboarding targeted from the first quarter of 2027.

The initiative addresses a liquidity constraint in cross-border settlement rather than only payment speed. Correspondent banking has traditionally required bilateral nostro relationships and prefunded positions across currencies, adding funding costs and operational complexity. Support from Deutsche Bank, Standard Chartered and Kinexys indicates that the model is being tested against bank liquidity requirements. Its commercial impact will depend on the settlement banks and currencies onboarded after launch.

2. Eurosystem launches Pontes to settle tokenised assets using central bank money

The Eurosystem launched Pontes on 21 September, enabling wholesale transactions in tokenised assets to be settled using central bank money. The launch marks the first implementation step in its tokenised finance strategy. Pontes builds on its 2024 distributed ledger technology experiments, where market participants identified access to a risk-free settlement asset as critical to broader adoption. Thirteen market participants and four DLT operators are ready to use Pontes, while the Bundesbank has also onboarded in a market-participant capacity. Additional functionality and longer operating hours will be introduced gradually, with full implementation expected by 2028.

Pontes addresses a foundational requirement for institutional tokenisation: settlement finality comparable with traditional markets. The European Central Bank is also preparing to invest part of its own funds in tokenised public-sector and supranational securities settled through Pontes. This would give the platform an institutional use case beyond isolated proofs of concept.

3. HSBC implements cross-border cash pooling as China expands nationwide liquidity framework

HSBC announced on 20 September that it had implemented cross-border cash pooling services for two multinational companies, including Carrier, following China’s nationwide expansion of its Centralised Operation and Management of Cross-Border RMB and Foreign Currency Funds programme. The framework, available nationwide from 14 September, allows eligible multinationals to centralise RMB and foreign currency funds, combine foreign debt and overseas lending quotas and allocate liquidity at group level. HSBC has established more than 260 cross-border treasury structures for multinational clients in China.

The framework changes how multinationals can manage China liquidity rather than simply adding another cash pooling product. Treasury teams have traditionally operated separate onshore and offshore funding structures under distinct controls. By end-June 2026, the official programme covered more than 260 multinationals and 5,500 domestic and overseas member companies. HSBC’s implementations show the nationwide expansion beginning to translate into corporate treasury execution.

4. I&M Bank adopts Surecomp platforms to standardise trade finance across five markets

I&M Bank announced on 16 September that it will deploy Surecomp’s DOKA-NG back-office and RIVO front-office trade finance platforms across its regional operations. The rollout will begin in Kenya before extending to Tanzania, Rwanda, Uganda and Bank One in Mauritius. The bank aims to digitise customer applications and internal processing, reduce paper-based work, improve turnaround times and strengthen risk and compliance controls.

More important than the software procurement is I&M’s attempt to standardise customer journeys, document handling and controls across five markets. A common front-to-back platform could reduce the operational fragmentation that often accompanies regional expansion and give corporate clients a more consistent trade finance experience. The benefits will emerge progressively as each subsidiary migrates.

5. IFC, Absa Bank Ghana and Complete Farmer expand agricultural finance through risk sharing and digital infrastructure

International Finance Corporation (IFC) partnered with Absa Bank Ghana and agricultural technology company Complete Farmer on 16 September to expand financing across Ghana’s cocoa value chain. Supported by the Private Sector Window of the Global Agriculture and Food Security Program, IFC will provide up to $50 million in unfunded risk participation, enabling as much as $200 million in financing for licensed buying companies purchasing traceable cocoa. The facility is expected to support more than 139,000 smallholders. IFC will also provide Complete Farmer with a $2.4 million convertible loan and $660,000 in advisory and grant support.

The partnerships address two financing gaps: the Absa facility expands seasonal working capital for cocoa buyers, while Complete Farmer supports input finance and digital access at farm level. Risk sharing directs liquidity towards seasonal purchasing without requiring the Absa facility to lend directly to individual farmers. The traceability requirement also links financing with supply chain provenance, while Complete Farmer aims to support 240,000 farmers by 2030.

6. EBRD and EU introduce portfolio risk-sharing framework with XacBank to expand MSME lending in Mongolia

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and European Union introduced a portfolio risk-sharing framework with Mongolia’s XacBank on 17 September. The EBRD will provide an unfunded guarantee of up to EUR 25 million ($29 million), covering as much as 50% of XacBank’s credit risk on new MSME loans. The facility will support working-capital financing, alongside EU-funded assistance through the EBRD Advice for Small Businesses programme. It also benefits from a EUR 2.25 million ($2.6 million) EU guarantee. XacBank is the first Mongolian institution to participate in the framework.

The structure improves the risk-adjusted economics of MSME lending by absorbing part of the credit risk and giving XacBank greater capacity to finance businesses with limited financial information or collateral. At the maximum 50% coverage level, the EUR 25 million guarantee can support a new loan portfolio of about EUR 50 million ($58 million).

7. Saudi National Bank, Gulf International Bank and BSF join PIF’s Tawrid supply-chain finance platform

Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) has launched Tawrid, a digital supply-chain finance platform connecting buyers, suppliers and funders. Operating within the Saudi Central Bank’s regulatory sandbox, Tawrid has begun operations under binding agreements with Gulf International Bank, Saudi National Bank, Banque Saudi Fransi, ROSHN Group and Nesma & Partners. It offers early settlement against approved invoices, enabling participating banks to finance suppliers linked to registered buyers.

Tawrid applies a buyer-led financing model to Saudi corporate supply chains. Traditional SME lending often depends on supplier balance sheets and collateral, while supply-chain finance shifts the assessment towards approved invoices and the credit strength of anchor buyers. By connecting PIF portfolio companies, Tawrid could extend working-capital financing across PIF-linked supply chains while reducing the need for separate arrangements among buyers, suppliers and funders

8. Bank of America’s CashPro App processes EUR 100 billion in European corporate payment approvals

Bank of America announced on 17 September that its CashPro App facilitated more than EUR 100 billion ($115 billion) in payment approvals by European corporate clients in the first seven months of 2026. Transaction count increased 25% and payment value rose 21% year on year. The bank said 74% of European CashPro users now select its mobile token as their preferred authentication method.

The significance lies in the migration of treasury controls onto mobile channels rather than a new payment capability. Transaction count grew slightly faster than value, showing that activity expanded by number as well as value rather than being driven solely by larger payments. With almost three-quarters of European users choosing the mobile token, CashPro increasingly functions as both an authentication layer and a transaction approval channel. Globally, the app processed $1.2 trillion in approvals in 2025.

9. NPCI introduces MDR framework for selected UPI merchant transactions

National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) introduced a Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) framework for selected Unified Payments Interface person-to-merchant transactions. It applies a 0.4% fee above INR 2,000 ($21), with an INR 300 ($3) cap for transactions of INR 75,000 ($783) or more, from 15 October 2026. Consumers cannot be charged, while small merchants processing no more than INR 100,000 ($1,044) a month will continue to pay zero MDR.

The change is a partial recalibration of UPI’s zero-charge model rather than its wholesale removal. Payments of INR 2,000 or less represent more than 95% of person-to-merchant volume and remain free. NPCI said the revenue would support infrastructure resilience, cybersecurity and service investment. The framework for a dedicated small-merchant support fund is to be finalised with the Reserve Bank of India within three months.

10. ECB invites online and mobile merchants to join digital euro pilot

The Eurosystem announced on 15 September that it had opened applications for e-commerce and mobile-commerce merchants to participate in the digital euro pilot. Selected merchants will enable beta digital euro payments in controlled online and mobile environments and help validate the payment experience, operational processes and core functionality. The call follows the selection of payment service providers, while the 12-month pilot is expected to begin in the second half of 2027.

The pilot extends testing to the merchant acceptance layer where users would encounter a digital euro in everyday transactions. It remains a controlled exercise rather than a commercial rollout, and participation does not predetermine the final design or future launch. Its value lies in identifying integration requirements and checkout frictions before the Eurosystem determines the project’s next stage.