(15 July 2024 – Europe) BNP Paribas has entered a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with China’s Ant International to enhance cross-border payment services for merchants and consumers in Europe.
Under this agreement, BNP Paribas will facilitate the acceptance of payments from over 25 international mobile partners via Alipay+ for merchants using the French bank’s acquiring service across Europe.
The partnership also includes efforts to strengthen WorldFirst’s involvement in the Single Euro Payments Area (Sepa) scheme. BNP Paribas will support WorldFirst’s integration into the Sepa scheme by providing expertise and products.
BNP Paribas will also explore advancements in tokenised deposits for global treasury management through Ant’s blockchain-based Whale platform in an effort to enhance the efficiency and speed of global fund settlements using tokenised deposits.
BNP Paribas’ infrastructure will be used to enhance Ant’s Whale platform, improving the efficiency and transparency of fund movement between bank accounts for enhanced global liquidity management.
Pierre Fersztand, global head of cash management, payments, trade solutions & factoring at BNP Paribas added: “This new agreement with Ant International deepens a long-term collaboration that started in 2016 when Alipay+ was rolled-out in Europe. This is a key step in bolstering our service offering while leveraging on each other’s strengths to offer our clients the best service when it comes to cross-border payments. Additionally, we are keen to foster innovation with such a key player to develop tomorrow’s treasury management standards.”