FinTra Holding Launches the Universal Payment Network (UPN) Consortium

Press Release:

The Universal Payment Network (UPN), a subsidiary of FinTra Holding, has announced the launch of the UPN Consortium, an open global community platform aimed at building a global framework for collaboration among payment networks, banks, financial institutions, digital wallets, remittance companies, and open finance providers. This initiative will facilitate insights from various markets and contribute directly to defining strategic and commercial priorities.

The UPN Consortium platform, announced during the Money20/20 Middle East event in Riyadh, engages stakeholders worldwide in the payments and financial transfer ecosystem, shaping the future directions of the network and contributing to its strategy, roadmap, pricing principles, and priorities for developing cross-border payment and transfer solutions.

The UPN operates the platform and develops its infrastructure and capabilities, providing a structured framework for participating institutions to guide the future of the network while maintaining clarity in operational and regulatory responsibilities necessary for building a secure and scalable global network.

Dr. Walid Sadiq, founder and CEO of FinTra Holding, stated that the launch of the UPN Consortium comes at a time when the global payments industry is experiencing rapid growth in card networks, digital wallets, instant payment systems, financial transfers, banking, and open finance. He noted that many of these systems still operate across separate technical, commercial, and settlement environments, complicating connectivity and prolonging the time needed to access new markets.

He added that the UPN has been designed to address this challenge by acting as a neutral interoperability layer, connecting participating networks and institutions through a unified global infrastructure, allowing each institution to maintain its local identity, regulatory responsibilities, and customer relationships while expanding its reach to other systems worldwide.

The UPN network spans over 50 markets globally, encompassing more than 500 million accounts and providing access to over 100 alternative payment methods (APMs), enhancing its ability to build an interconnected ecosystem for payments and financial transfers across different markets.

Sadiq explained that connecting with UPN enables qualified institutions to expand their capacity to send and receive payments and transfers, reducing the need for multiple bilateral connectivity operations, and accessing additional transaction flows and potential revenue-generating opportunities. Participation in the network, depending on the availability of transfer corridors and regulatory requirements, can support access to foreign currencies and liquidity capabilities.

He noted that UPN is also designed to support multiple transaction categories across participating markets, including person-to-person (P2P) transfers, transfers between accounts and wallets linked to the network, person-to-merchant (P2M) payments in traditional stores, e-commerce, and digital platforms, as well as business-to-business (B2B) payments across the networked markets.

Dr. Walid Sadiq emphasized that the UPN Consortium opens the door for qualified institutions from various sectors of the payments and financial services industry, including local and international card networks, instant payment networks, national payment keys, banks, microfinance institutions, buy now, pay later (BNPL) companies, mobile money operators, and digital wallet providers.

Targeted entities also include money transfer companies, currency exchange providers, open banking and open finance service providers, account-to-account payment solutions, payment processors, payment acceptance companies, government payment platforms, licensed digital asset service providers, and institutions involved in clearing, settlement, liquidity, and correspondent banking services.

He added that participation requests will be evaluated based on a set of criteria, including regulatory status, market coverage scope, compliance controls, technical readiness, settlement capabilities, transaction use cases, and the value the institution can add to the ecosystem.

The founder and CEO of FinTra Holding explained that the next generation of global payments will not be built by replacing successful local payment systems but by connecting them with each other. The UPN Consortium will provide a practical platform for institutions already moving money to contribute to shaping a network characterized by interoperability from its design, meeting commercial requirements while respecting local sovereignty. He added, "We invite leaders in the payments and financial transfer sectors worldwide to join the dialogue and contribute to building this infrastructure together."

The cooperative structure of the UPN Consortium aims to reflect the needs and priorities of participating institutions while maintaining the operational clarity necessary to build a secure and scalable network, with UPN remaining responsible for operating the network and executing its capabilities, while participants contribute to guiding strategic priorities and market priorities.

Sadiq revealed the completion of the first live transaction from a local wallet across Africa through the UPN global payments network, a key milestone reflecting the network's transition from vision to actual execution, confirming its ability to connect local payment systems through its global interoperability infrastructure.

This achievement, along with UPN's access to over 100 alternative payment methods and a network comprising more than 500 million accounts, reinforces its plans to build a global infrastructure capable of enabling interconnected payments and financial transfers across different markets while maintaining local regulatory and commercial requirements.

The UPN Consortium is an open community led by participating institutions from various sectors of the global payments and financial transfer ecosystem, providing a structured framework to contribute to defining the network's trends, roadmap, pricing principles, and strategy. The Universal Payment Network (UPN), a subsidiary of FinTra Holding, is a global network connecting payment networks, aiming to enable immediate and sovereign global financial flows through a neutral interoperability layer connecting local payment systems, financial institutions, digital wallets, remittance service providers, open finance platforms, and other entities subject to regulatory frameworks.