NBB teams up with TerraPay to widen cross-border payouts

National Bank of Bahrain has partnered with TerraPay to expand its international payout services, linking the Bahraini lender to TerraPay's global digital payments network.

The partnership will let NBB use TerraPay's infrastructure for cross-border payouts, including access to bank accounts, digital wallets, and local payment systems through a single connection. The arrangement gives the bank access to more than 12 billion endpoints worldwide.

Under the agreement, NBB will connect to TerraPay through Swift ISO 20022 messaging, enabling it to use its existing Swift infrastructure and relationship management application processes rather than build separate links into each market. The model is intended to reduce the operational burden of direct integrations while widening access to new payment corridors.

The move reflects growing pressure on banks in the Gulf and elsewhere to offer broader international payment options as customers increasingly use digital wallets and expect faster cross-border settlement. For banks with established correspondent networks, partnerships with specialist payment firms have become one way to expand payout options without replacing core systems.

Founded in 1957, NBB is Bahrain's first locally owned bank and serves retail, corporate, commercial, and institutional customers. It also operates branches in Abu Dhabi and Riyadh, while its subsidiary, Bahrain Islamic Bank, extends its reach across conventional and Sharia-compliant banking.

Cross-border focus

TerraPay's role in the partnership centres on receiving Swift messages and delivering cross-border transactions in real time across its network. The service is intended to give customers greater transparency and avoid deductions from the principal amount during transfer.

That proposition is likely to appeal to banks seeking to retain customer relationships while expanding the range of destinations they can serve. Instead of relying solely on traditional correspondent banking links, lenders can use external networks to reach local payment systems and digital wallets in more markets.

"International connectivity is becoming increasingly important to how our customers operate, and our role is to ensure that NBB's transaction banking expertise continues to serve those needs with speed and reliability. This collaboration is a strategic step forward in scaling our payments proposition through infrastructure that can improve the cross-border transaction experience. Through TerraPay, we see an opportunity to connect our customers in Bahrain and the region with a wider range of payment destinations, supporting their growth as their requirements become more global," said Vineet Munot, Group Head of Transaction Banking, NBB.

For TerraPay, the agreement adds another banking partner as it seeks to position itself as a bridge between traditional financial institutions and newer forms of digital payment. It operates across multiple regulated markets and connects banks, wallets, money transfer operators, corporates and fintech platforms.

Network reach

Banks can use TerraPay's Swift connectivity to reach its network of bank accounts, wallets and local payment rails worldwide through a single global arrangement. That approach allows partners to focus on customer service and banking operations while using existing infrastructure to support broader payment coverage.

Its network spans more than 156 countries and includes billions of bank accounts and digital wallets. Alongside its bank account reach, the company has also built a wallet interoperability network, reflecting the growing role of non-bank endpoints in international payments.

For NBB, the agreement fits into a broader effort by regional banks to expand digital services while maintaining established banking rails. Bahrain has positioned itself as a financial centre with an active fintech sector, and banks in the market have been under pressure to modernise payment offerings for both consumers and businesses.

The partnership also underlines the continued importance of Swift as a messaging layer in new payment models. Rather than displacing Swift, firms such as TerraPay are using it as an access route for banks that want to connect to alternative payout networks with less disruption to existing operations.

"Banks want to extend their international payment reach without having to build and maintain separate connections into every market, wallet and local payment system. That is exactly the problem TerraPay solves. By combining TerraPay's global payout network with Swift connectivity, NBB can use its existing banking infrastructure to access more than 12 billion bank accounts, digital wallets and local payment systems through a single global network.

This partnership gives NBB a faster and more scalable way to expand into new corridors, broaden customer choice and improve the cross-border payment experience, while allowing the bank to retain control of the customer relationship and its core banking infrastructure. NBB is a strong example of how leading banks are choosing TerraPay to extend traditional correspondent banking into the rapidly growing world of instant payments and digital wallets," said Ani Sane, Co-Founder and Chief Business Officer, TerraPay.