This week in transaction finance, the European Parliament advanced the digital euro, Swift prepared its blockchain ledger for 17 global bank pilots and Siam Commercial Bank (SCB) went live with Citi’s 24/7 US dollar clearing.

In trade finance, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) launched a EUR 15 million ($17.1 million) trade finance facility through Ecobank Senegal and Citi structured a EUR 1 billion ($1.14 billion) multi-borrower export credit framework for Enel backed by Euler Hermes.

Read more on the week’s key developments:

1. European Parliament backs digital euro, starting final negotiations

The European Parliament voted on 8 July 2026 to back the draft rules for a digital euro and initiate interinstitutional negotiations with the Council of the European Union, moving the project closer to implementation and eventual integration into Europe’s payment infrastructure. The vote clears a key procedural step ahead of finalising the legal framework, with testing planned for the second half of 2027 and potential launch thereafter.

The decision paves the way for commercial banks to distribute digital euro wallets and integrate the digital currency into treasury services, cross‑border payments and account services, ultimately reshaping liquidity and settlement functions.

2. Swift shared ledger ready for live cross‑border bank pilots

Swift announced its blockchain‑based shared ledger infrastructure is ready for pilot transactions involving participation from 17 banks including ANZ, BNP Paribas, BNY, Citi, DBS, First Abu Dhabi Bank, FirstRand Bank Limited, HSBC, Itaú Unibanco, Lloyds Bank, Mashreq, MUFG Bank, OCBC, Standard Chartered, UBS, UOB and Wells Fargo. The platform allows tokenised deposit exchanges for near-real-time cross-border payments outside traditional cut-off times, while final settlement remains anchored in established banking rails.

By using tokenised deposits for intra-network transfers, banks can potentially move funds more quickly between correspondent accounts without changing core settlement systems, reflecting the evolving infrastructure supporting cross-border payments and real-time treasury operations.

3. Siam Commercial Bank goes live with Citi’s 24/7 US dollar clearing

Siam Commercial Bank (SCB) in Thailand became the first financial institution to implement Citi’s integrated 24/7 USD Clearing and Token Services, enabling always‑on US dollar cross‑border payments for corporate and institutional clients. The first live transfer moved funds from a Citi London account to SCB Thailand during a US holiday weekend.

This rollout enhances SCB’s corporate treasury offerings by providing always-on settlement and demonstrates a broader industry shift toward round-the-clock liquidity access for global corporate clients.

4. EBRD launches first trade finance facility in Senegal via Ecobank

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), in partnership with Ecobank Senegal, launched its first trade finance facility of EUR 15 million ($17.1 million) under the EBRD’s Trade Facilitation Programme. The facility supports imports and exports by enabling Ecobank Senegal to issue guarantees to confirming banks, mitigating political and commercial payment risks for international trade transactions.

This facility strengthens Ecobank Senegal’s capacity to support corporates and small and medium enterprises in their international trade by providing guarantees and linking local banks to EBRD’s global partner network.

5. Citi coordinates EUR 1 billion ($1.14 billion) Euler Hermes‑backed export financing framework for Enel

Citi acted as sole global coordinator and mandated lead arranger for a EUR 1 billion ($1.14 billion) multi-borrower, multi-currency export financing framework for the Enel Group, a leading global energy company. Loans under the framework carry a 95% guarantee from Euler Hermes, the export credit agency (ECA) of Germany. The structure is flexible, allowing multiple Enel subsidiaries to access financing in different currencies. The first loan of $580 million was extended to Enel Finance International N.V. as borrower.

The framework illustrates bank partnerships with ECAs, multilateral agencies and development finance institutions. It ensures efficient capital deployment, risk mitigation and tailored support for multiple corporate entities across geographies, highlighting the role in facilitating large-scale, multi-party, cross-border trade and export credit finance.

6. Bank of India onboards onto PSB Xchange digital supply chain finance platform

Bank of India has been onboarded as a lending partner on the PSB Xchange platform, a unified digital supply chain finance (SCF) and working capital finance network developed by PSB Alliance and powered by Veefin Solutions. Under the agreement, Bank of India can extend digitally enabled SCF to eligible borrowers associated with participating anchor corporates on the platform, supporting dealer and micro, small and medium-sized enterprise (MSME) financing via a standardised digital onboarding, credit assessment and financing process.

This reflects the Indian banking sector’s broader shift towards digital infrastructure for institutional SCF. Through a shared multi‑lender ecosystem, the bank can scale its SCF offerings more efficiently and improve working capital access for MSMEs through automated processes and unified technology.

7. NAPAS partners with TikTok Shop to integrate digital payment platform

Vietnam National Payment Corporation (NAPAS) signed an agreement with TikTok Shop Vietnam Co., Ltd. to integrate the e-commerce platform with NAPAS’s Digital Payment Platform (DPP). The integration allows TikTok Shop users to make online payments using NAPAS cards, account-based payments from 44 participating banks, Apple Pay and other payment apps, with secure authentication and streamlined transaction processing.

The rollout is designed to standardise payment acceptance and enable rapid integration for merchants and payment service providers nationwide. While primarily a retail-focused development, the initiative demonstrates how institutional payment infrastructures can facilitate integration across multiple financial partners, improve transaction efficiency and enhance nationwide digital payment capabilities.

8. Positive Zero secures $375 million non-recourse financing for Middle East energy infrastructure

Positive Zero, a UAE-based sustainable infrastructure platform, announced the successful closing of a $375 million non-recourse financing facility arranged by Natixis Corporate & Investment Banking (Natixis CIB) and The Arab Energy Fund. Natixis CIB also acts as Facility Agent, Security Agent and Green Loan Coordinator. The financing supports a diversified portfolio of distributed solar power generation, energy efficiency and clean mobility projects across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Oman and Qatar.

By mobilising multiple institutional lenders through a structured facility, it demonstrates how banks and development funds are supporting large-scale infrastructure investments while enhancing liquidity solutions for the financing of renewable and energy-efficient assets.

9. Gerald Group closes $50 million ECI-backed finance facility with ADCB

Gerald Metals Sàrl, the Geneva-based subsidiary of Gerald Group, secured a $50 million, three-year finance facility supported by Etihad Credit Insurance (ECI), the United Arab Emirates’ federal export credit agency. Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank (ADCB) acted as lender to the facility. This marks Gerald Group’s first ECI-backed financing, expanding its global funding platform, extending tenor and supporting UAE-origin metals trade flows linked to the energy transition, technology and industrial sectors.

The partnership underscores ECI’s strategic mandate to expand the UAE’s non-oil exports, while ADCB’s participation reflects the increasing institutional collaboration between regional banks and international trading companies to support global commodity trade.

10. Indonesia and India to connect QRIS and UPI payment systems by end-2026

The central banks of Indonesia and India announced plans to link QRIS (Indonesia) and UPI (India) by end-2026, enabling cross-border retail and merchant payments.

While primarily a retail payments infrastructure initiative, this will require banks and payment service providers to integrate cross-border QR rails, which could influence liquidity and cross-border transaction volumes for participating financial institutions.

Transaction Finance Weekly is a briefing on developments shaping transaction banking, trade finance and supply chain finance globally.