Banco de la República & ACI Worldwide partner on real-time payments in Colombia

By Delisha Fernandes

Banco de la República Colombia, has partnered with ACI Worldwide, to build a new domestic real-time payments ecosystem as part of a nationwide banking transformation project.

The Central Bank will utilize ACI’s Digital Central Infrastructure, part of the ACI Enterprise Payments Platform to build the Central Infrastructure of an interoperable, countrywide scheme that includes centralized settlement and addressing services for the existing real-time payments schemes.

“We are excited about the real-time payments modernization journey we have embarked upon jointly with ACI Worldwide, a global leader in real-time payments,” said Leonardo Villar, Governor of the Central Bank of Colombia. “It will be the first scheme in Latin America that will be built through collaborative consensus by all stakeholders in the payments ecosystem – government, regulators, private banks and the Central Bank have all been working together with the aim to bring the benefits of real-time payments modernization to Colombian consumers and businesses.”

Colombia like other countries in the region is primed to realize significant economic benefits for businesses and consumers from the adoption of real-time payments. Real-time payments improve overall market efficiencies and boost economic growth.

ACI currently powers 25 domestic and pan-regional real-time schemes across six continents – including nine central infrastructures – providing solutions to central banks, participant banks, FinTechs and other payment service providers.

“We applaud the Colombian Central Bank for its decision to embrace innovative technologies, its ability to achieve consensus by all players in the payments ecosystem, and its determination to drive change and transformation at dazzling speed,” said Tom Warsop, President and CEO, ACI Worldwide. “Real-time payments improve liquidity in the financial system and overall market efficiencies in the economy. Colombia now has an incredible opportunity to drive economic growth and financial inclusion with the help of real-time payments.”