A Networked Future for Payments
At the heart of the global payments industry lie ever-higher expectations: near-instant settlement, ultra-low cost, seamless cross-border flow, and embedded finance experiences. Fiserv, a global leader in payments and financial-services technology solutions, is placing collaboration at the centre of making that future real.
In a recent address at the SIBOS 2025 conference in Frankfurt, senior Fiserv executive Rossana Thomas reflected on the decades-long evolution of payments infrastructure — and identified one constant: connection. “Every year, the problems evolve,” she noted, “but the answer always begins with collaboration.”
From standardisation efforts like ISO 20022, to global stablecoin interoperability initiatives, to financial-institution APIs, Fiserv is actively building the bridges for the next phase of payments.
Strategic Pillars of Fiserv’s Collaboration Agenda
1. Stablecoin & Digital-Asset Integration
One of the fastest-moving fronts is Fiserv’s work with stablecoins. In June 2025 the company announced a strategic collaboration with Circle Internet Group to integrate regulated USDC-based infrastructure into bank and merchant payment flows.
Additionally, Fiserv and PayPal Holdings, Inc. expanded their partnership to enable interoperability between FIUSD (Fiserv’s bank-friendly stablecoin) and PYUSD (PayPal’s stablecoin), supporting domestic and cross-border use cases.
These moves illustrate how Fiserv views stablecoins not as standalone novelties, but as components of a broader payments ecosystem — one where banks, fintechs, merchants and rails converge.
2. Cross-Border Payments & Real-Time Rails
Fiserv’s collaboration isn’t only digital-asset focused. Its February 2025 partnership with StoneX Group Inc. extended its “Payments Exchange Services” platform — giving community banks and credit unions access to 24/7 real-time clearing (via RTP® and FedNow®) and global FX capabilities.
By widening access to real-time rails and cross-border reach, Fiserv aims to level the playing field for smaller institutions — enabling them to compete globally without building bespoke infrastructure.
3. Open APIs and Fintech Ecosystems
Another pillar is Fiserv’s emphasis on open architecture and co-creation. Its “Banking Hub” initiative provides self-service access to its core banking APIs, enabling fintechs, ISVs and institutions to build on its platforms.
This collaborative model allows external innovators to plug in, iterate, deploy — rather than banks re-invent everything in-house. The result? Faster product launches, richer ecosystems and broader reach.
Why Collaboration Matters Now
Several industry shifts make Fiserv’s collaborative agenda timely:
- Standardisation & Interoperability: Initiatives like ISO 20022, SWIFT gpi and global instant-payment frameworks require coordination across jurisdictions. As Rossana Thomas noted: “Countries are learning from one another — understanding what worked, what didn’t, and applying those lessons.”
- Fragmentation Risks: Global payments face fragmentation — by rails, geographies, regulations and liquidity networks. Collaboration mitigates siloed builds and duplication.
- Embedded Finance & Platformisation: As finance embeds into commerce, logistics and other ecosystems, payment providers need robust platforms and partner networks to scale. Open APIs and fintech alliances deliver that.
- Regulatory Complexity: From stablecoins to cross-border FX and AML/transaction-monitoring, compliance burdens are rising. Partnerships help spread risk, scale resources and align with local frameworks while enabling global reach.
How Fiserv Executes the Strategy
- Building Anchor Platforms: Fiserv’s core banking, merchant and payment platforms serve as nodes around which partners build.
- Making Access Easier: With Banking Hub, fintechs can obtain API keys, sandbox environments and pre-integrated workflows — accelerating time-to-market.
- Forming Targeted Alliances: The Circle and PayPal tie-ups illustrate how Fiserv chooses partners that extend its reach and capability (e.g., stablecoins, digital-asset rails, merchant networks).
- Enabling Smaller Institutions: Through partnerships like StoneX, Fiserv brings global payment capabilities to community banks and credit unions — markets often overlooked by high-cost bespoke builds.
- Promoting Standards & Insight-Sharing: At industry gatherings like SIBOS, Fiserv emphasises collaborative dialogue, knowledge-sharing and collective problem-solving as growth enablers.
Strategic Impact on Banks, Merchants & Fintechs
For banks & credit unions: Access to frontier rails, stablecoins and fintech ecosystems without sole-in-house builds.
For merchants & ISVs: Faster integrations, richer payment features, lower friction via Fiserv-enabled networks.
For fintechs/innovators: A strong infrastructure partner (Fiserv) plus open access to core banking APIs and global reach.
For ecosystems: Reduced duplication, improved interoperability, and more coherent global payment experiences.
Risks & Considerations
- Regulatory Uncertainty: Stablecoins, cross-border payments and digital-asset rails remain under evolving regulation.
- Operational Complexity: Collaboration is easier described than delivered — aligning systems, data, risk models and business models takes time.
- Competition Dynamics: While collaborating, Fiserv must also compete with incumbents and fintech-native players for relevance and mind-share.
- Execution at Scale: Moving from alliances to large-scale production, especially across geographies and institutions of significant size, will test resilience and integration-quality.
Looking Ahead: What to Watch
- Roll-out of FIUSD across banks and customers, and its merchant/settlement adoption.
- Number and nature of fintech/API ecosystem partners launching on Fiserv’s Banking Hub.
- Community banks and credit unions leveraging Fiserv’s global payment platforms and real-time rails.
- Degree of standardisation achieved across jurisdictions and rails in which Fiserv plays a role.
- Broader market impact: Will collaboration-centric models displace proprietary-only builds in payments?
Final Thoughts
Fiserv’s emphasis on collaboration—whether via open APIs, stablecoin ecosystems or real-time cross-border rails—is more than strategy: it’s a recognition that global payments progress is inherently network-driven. As payments move at the speed of the internet, the companies that build bridges and ecosystems—not just endpoints—will shape the next decade of finance. Fiserv appears to be building not only the platform, but the partner-network to deliver it.