MUFG bank partners with Finastra to modernise payment services

By Parth Prabhudesai

Japan’s MUFG Bank has expanded partnership with Finastra to modernise its Automated Clearing House (ACH) payment services in the United States using the Global PAYplus platform.

The platform serves as a centralised processing hub, enabling MUFG to manage both incoming and outgoing payments across multiple channels, including ACH, instant payments, and international wire transfers. The move is part of the bank’s broader strategy to streamline payment operations and enhance efficiency across domestic and cross-border transactions.

This marks MUFG’s third major regional deployment of Global PAYplus, following earlier implementations across its payments infrastructure in Japan and Europe. The bank first began adopting the platform five years ago as part of a wider transformation initiative.

Alla Whitston, America Chief Information Officer at MUFG, said: “In 2021, we began our ISO 20022 journey with a bold decision to replace the core payment engine with a completely new one. After careful evaluation, we selected Finastra as our partner to first modernise our payment capabilities and, following its successful completion, decided to migrate our legacy ACH platform.”

According to Finastra, the migration is already delivering measurable benefits, with Straight Through Processing (STP) rates now exceeding 95%, driving improved operational efficiency and faster payment execution.

The expanded multi-year collaboration also aligns with MUFG’s global standardisation efforts, particularly its transition to ISO 20022. As part of this journey, MUFG completed its first live ISO 20022-native payment on the CHIPS network with Crédit Agricole in early 2024.

The bank has also been advancing its intelligent payments engine to automate routing decisions based on cost and settlement speed, further strengthening its global payments capabilities.