Ant International and BNP Paribas have entered into a strategic partnership to enhance cross-border payment solutions for European merchants and consumers.
The partnership was formalized through a memorandum of understanding signed in Zurich by Douglas Feagin, president of Ant International, and Pierre Verstin, global head of cash management, payments, trade solutions and factoring at BNP Paribas.
Ant International is collaborating with BNP Paribas to enable thousands of merchants using BNP Paribas’ pan-European acquiring services to accept payments from more than 25 international mobile partners via Alipay+. The collaboration aims to streamline cross-border transactions, making them more efficient and accessible for businesses and consumers.
The partnership also strengthens WorldFirst’s participation in the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) scheme.
BNP Paribas will support WorldFirst’s integration into SEPA, enabling WorldFirst clients to access real-time payment schemes under SEPA and automate financial payments. This initiative will improve the efficiency and speed of online cross-border payments and funds transfers within the SEPA zone.
The strategic partnership will also explore the innovation of tokenized deposits for global treasury management through Ant International’s Whale platform.
The partnership aims to leverage BNP Paribas’ infrastructure and Ant International’s blockchain technology, advanced cryptography and AI capabilities to improve the efficiency and speed of global financial settlements.
Douglas Feagin
“Europe is a key region for Ant International due to the rise of cross-border commerce and increasing traveller numbers to the region. Through our collaboration with leading industry partners, we will combine Ant International’s digital payments and innovative technology solutions with BNP Paribas’ extensive experience in the European market to increase connectivity and make global travel and trade more convenient.”
Douglas Feagin, president of Ant International, said:
Pierre Ferstin,
“This new agreement with Ant International deepens our long-standing cooperation that began with the rollout of Alipay+ in Europe in 2016. It is an important step to enhance our service offering while leveraging our mutual strengths to best serve our customers when it comes to cross-border payments. Furthermore, we hope to foster innovation with such an important player to develop tomorrow’s financial management standards.”
Pierre Verstin, Global Head of Cash Management, Payments, Trade Solutions and Factoring at BNP Paribas, added:
Featured Image Credit: BNP Paribas
