Stablecoin issuer Circle has announced it will launch the Circle Payments Network (CPN), a real-time cross-border settlement network to support the growth of stablecoin transactions.
Described by the USDC issuer as the “next step in Circle’s evolution”, the CPN will aim to connect financial institutions, such as banks, neobanks, payment service providers and digital asset companies, to perform seamless transactions with various stablecoins.
The CPN will work in a similar manner to SWIFT but will support stablecoin and cryptocurrency cross-border payments to help better connect companies to adopt digital currencies.
Circle cited issues of cross-border payments that can still take longer than one business day to settle, costing more than 6%, according to the World Bank, impacting emerging markets and limiting global competitiveness. Delays are driven by multiple intermediaries, compliance checks, local market cut-off times, and fragmented operating hours across jurisdictions.
Designed to bring efficiencies to a fragmented cross-border payments system, CPN seeks to provide financial institutions with a new way to move money globally with speed, transparency, and programmability.
The CPN is governed by a legal framework that requires participants to meet eligibility standards, including licensing, AML/CFT compliance, financial risk management, and cybersecurity protocols.
By leveraging USDC, EURC, and other regulated stablecoins, CPN enables connectivity to domestic real-time payment systems worldwide, while upholding the compliance, security, and trust required for financial institutions to meet their regulatory obligations.
Jeremy Allaire, Co-Founder, Chairman, and CEO of Circle, said: “Since our founding, Circle’s vision has been to make moving money as simple and efficient as sending an email. CPN is a significant step in making that vision a reality for businesses worldwide.”
The CPN has already garnered the backing of leading financial institutions like Banco Santander, Deutsche Bank, Société Générale and Standard Chartered to contribute their own digital assets ventures to support the growth of the network.
In collaboration with global design partners, CPN will look to unify payment networks and local currencies, enabling 24/7 real-time settlement using stablecoins. Design partners include BCB Group, BVNK, Nuvei, OpenPayd, RD Technologies and more.
Michael Spiegel, Global Head of Transaction Banking at Standard Chartered Bank, added: “Standard Chartered is continuously looking for opportunities to make cross-border payments more efficient, secure, and compliant to various regulatory requirements, globally.
“Circle’s compliance-first approach to building products like CPN is a game changer for how money moves across borders, and we are pleased to build on our partnership and offer them our global expertise to support the success of CPN.”
