TerraPay, a leading global payments infrastructure company, today announces a strategic equity investment from Visa, a world leader in digital payments. In addition, the companies are collaborating to connect Visa solutions to the TerraPay network to help streamline digital cross-border commerce for consumers and SMBs. Visa Direct, which facilitates the delivery of funds directly to eligible cards, bank accounts, and wallets around the world, is the first solution to connect to TerraPay’s network of wallet providers.
The enablement of Visa Direct to TerraPay’s global partner integrations of mobile wallets and bank accounts can empower seamless and fast person-to-person remittances for individuals, as well as business pay-outs for small and medium businesses (SMBs), across 108 receive countries.
Global cross-border trade has seen steady growth, largely from emerging markets. By 2025, cross-border trade is expected to reach a value of US$8Tn[1]. Despite this boom and the rise of digital payments globally, cross-border business payments continue to be complex and riddled with challenges, especially for SMBs. For these businesses, the process of sending money can often come with delays, high costs, lack of standardization, and inefficiency.
TerraPay and Visa’s collaboration will pave the path for holistic pay-in and pay-out solutions that can enhance the usage of eligible commercial cards for SMEs, extending to include added global money-movement capabilities, including cards, accounts, and wallets. At the same time, merchants can use TerraPay’s Request-to-Pay wallet solution, globally.
Speaking on this announcement, Ambar Sur, Founder and CEO, TerraPay, said, “It gives me great pride to say that TerraPay’s relationship with Visa is so much more than a collaboration. With Visa joining us as a key investor, this strategic alliance truly reflects a huge stride forward for global digital payments. We are thrilled to give shape to our joint vision of building a connected and empowered world of digital payments.”
Ruben Salazar Genovez, Global Head, Visa Direct, said, “We are thrilled that our investment in and collaboration with TerraPay is going to help further enhance the reach of Visa Direct and help spur financial inclusion. More people and SMBs, including underbanked and underserved communities around the world, will soon have access to inbound digital cross-border payment capabilities directly on their mobile devices.”
Ambar Sur also added, “Combining Visa’s scale with our global payments infrastructure, we will be able to help Visa customers enhance their pay-out experiences and scale their businesses faster. Our collaboration also serves the larger purpose of enhancing the way of life for these individuals and businesses, enabling them with a more connected and accessible global payments ecosystem.”
About TerraPay
Headquartered in the United Kingdom, TerraPay believes that the smallest payment deserves a borderless journey as safe as the largest. The group has been building an ever-expanding payments highway that empowers businesses to create transparent customer experiences with an uninterrupted, secure, and real-time global passage for every payment, however small or large. Registered and regulated across 27 global markets, TerraPay is one of the leading global partners to banks, mobile wallets, money transfer operators, merchants, and financial institutions, creating a more expansive and inclusive international financial ecosystem. With access to an extensive network of 7.5Bn+ bank accounts, 2.1Bn+ mobile wallets, across 108 receive countries and 205 send countries, TerraPay enables its partners to become beacons of the promise of global financial inclusion.