Bank of Ireland, AIB and PTSB have announced plans to launch a new person-to-person (P2P) mobile payment service named Zippay in early 2026.
Zippay will be available on all three banks’ digital banking apps and will be offered by European PayTech company Nexi in Ireland.
The service will enable users to send, request, and split payments in-app by using the mobile number of the receiver. Eligible customers will be able to enroll to Zippay when it is launched next year via their personal banking app.
“Developed in response to customer feedback and demand, this will provide a quick and easy way to send and receive money or split bills with friends, family and contacts who are also Zippay users,” said Brian Hayes, Chief Executive of Banking and Payments Federation Ireland (BPFI).
“It will be delivered through customers’ existing mobile banking apps and therefore comes with all the same high levels of security, protection, and digital safety and avoids the need for topping up a digital wallet or downloading a separate app.”
Zippay will identify the user by their mobile number and requires no additional manual payee details to enter, performing a P2P transaction that will allow users to send up to €1,000 per day and request up to €500 per transaction.
Nexi’s role
Alongside Bank of Ireland, AIB and PTSB, Nexi will provide Zippay to its Irish customers.
Nexi has partnerships with a range of Irish financial services, such as with Payac Services in 2024 to provide SEPA Instant Payments, and Synch Payments to launch a mobile payment service in 2022.
While it is unknown how many Irish customers Nexi have, the Paytech company serves an estimated 1.8 million credit union members via its partnership with Payac.
“Built on an API-based architecture, Nexi has designed Zippay for scalability and future expansion with the goal of making the solution as widely available as possible to customers across Ireland,” said Renato Martini, Digital Banking Solutions Director of Nexi Group.
“After the initial launch, Zippay will be offered on a non-discriminatory basis to all financial institutions that provide IBAN account services and a mobile app to Irish consumers and Nexi will manage the integration of eligible financial institutions that wish to join the service.”
A new competitor to Revolut in Ireland?
The P2P service could be likened to Revolut Pay, the UK fintech’s in-app payment service that connects Revolut users to make instant mobile app payments.
As of December 2024, Revolut has 3 million customers in Ireland. While Revolut grew its customer base in the country from 2.7 million to 3 million within a year, it is significantly less than the 5 million customers the BPFI stated Zippay will be made available to.
While Revolut has enjoyed customer success not just in Ireland, but across the world by reaching more than 60 million customers globally, could the arrival of Zippay next year threaten its progression and the growth of Revolut Pay?
