Barclays bolsters institutional payment processing in APAC with $1B infrastructure investments

Carl Hassey, head of Barclays GBP Clearing Solutions, and Christopher Selfe from Global Financial Institution Group (FIG) Cash Sales, discussed the bank’s strategic investments into modernising its global payment infrastructure. They emphasised how the integration of local instant payment systems (IPSs) is streamlining and future-proofing payment clearing and processing for institutional clients.

As low-value payment volumes surge, there is a global push to expand access to IPS. In Asia Pacific, this trend is driving regional integration of financial infrastructure, fostering competition and leading bank and non-bank players to offer faster, more transparent and reliable cross-border transactions.

“Banks in Asia Pacific need to adopt fintech-style innovations, like low-value payment solutions, to stay competitive. With the rising demand for these services, banks must continually innovate to keep up with fintech offerings,” emphasised Hassey.

Carl Hassey, Head of GBP Clearing Solutions, Barclays

As fintechs revolutionise payments with lower costs and agile solutions, financial institutions (FIs) face increasing pressure to provide comparable payment experiences. “FI clients seek connectivity to instant local payment schemes to compete with fintechs offering similar services at lower rates. With Barclays' access to UK Faster Payment Service (FPS), they expect us to match fintech experiences,” added Hassey.

Modernising global payment infrastructure to meet customers’ 24/7 needs

Barclays has invested over $1 billion to modernise its global payment infrastructure, products and processes, including the development of state-of-the-art global command centres and a joint operations centre (JOC). These centres enhance cost-efficiency, speed, and risk management in payment processing.

With command centres in Glasgow, New York, and Pune, Barclays ensures 24/7, real-time monitoring of nearly 10 million payments daily, totalling $1.1 trillion in value. These centres, along with the JOC, enhance client servicing and provide critical security and operational oversight, safeguarding Barclays' global payment infrastructure.

Barclay’s global network of command centres ensures seamless workflow and continuous payment processing across time zones, maintaining operations even during emergencies. “This follow-the-sun model guarantees that clients’ transactions are always secure and timely, regardless of their time zone,” said Hassey.

Barclays’ enhanced GBP payment solution for an Indian FI client

Barclays' technology investments are already delivering results. A leading Indian private sector bank faced significant challenges with its GBP payments, suffering from poor local processing and client dissatisfaction. This led to a loss of business for its UK subsidiary, which was tasked with managing these operations.

Barclays used its UK-based payment services and Swift capabilities to win back the client’s lost business. By leveraging its deep liquidity and product expertise, Barclays offered comprehensive GBP clearing services. Additionally, it implemented a Swift-to-UK FPS solution, enabling 24/7 processing of domestic and cross-border GBP inflows. This significantly expanded the subsidiary’s reach in the UK market.

As a result, the UK subsidiary’s flows saw an eightfold increase in monthly transaction volumes, with significantly improved payment processing times. Barclays now processes 75% to 80% of the client’s payments in under five minutes on UK FPS, far exceeding the standard operating hours of the Clearing House Automated Payment System (CHAPS).

According to Selfe, the solution not only resolved the client’s issues but also attracted additional payment flows from downstream institutional clients in India and Asia Pacific. Barclays’ proactive collaboration with the client’s operations team ensured seamless payment processing and added significant value through enhanced Swift to UK FPS capabilities.

Christopher Selfe, Global Financial Institution Group (FIG) Cash Sales, Barclays

Building for the future

Looking ahead, Barclays recognises that the downward pressure on fees and margins will continue to challenge the regional payments landscape. While competitors focus on lowering fees and increasing volumes to gain market share, Barclays is taking a strategic and long-term approach.

Beyond its completed investments in enhancing its global payment infrastructure, Barclays plans to expand access to local clearing schemes and implement an API-first strategy that extends beyond payments to include reporting and reconciliation. It has additionally introduced the FIG Payments Roadmap to ensure ISO 20022 readiness as it connects FIs across Asia Pacific with capital markets in the UK, Europe, and beyond.