Instant cross-border payments: unlocking the US–Mexico corridor

Cross-border payments underpin global commerce. As businesses continue international expansion and supply chains grow in complexity across borders, the movement of money has become inseparable from commercial performance. However, while transaction volumes continue to rise, the infrastructure supporting many cross-border payments has not kept pace. This is leaving businesses to contend with delays, limited transparency and operational complexity.

The United States–Mexico corridor encapsulates this challenge, as it’s one of the most economically important cross-border routes globally. It supports large-scale trade across industries, including manufacturing, energy and agriculture. Companies operating across this corridor require predictable settlement, transparent foreign exchange processes and accurate visibility into cash positions. These needs are amplified in an environment shaped by ongoing trade policy discussions, regulatory divergence and broader geopolitical considerations. When settlement is delayed, the impact is felt quickly through cash flow pressure, uncertainty and increased operational risk.

Business-to-business activity is driving the majority of cross-border payment volumes, and expectations have shifted to mirror that of consumer payments. Businesses expect cross-border payments to move with the same speed and clarity as domestic transactions. However, traditional correspondent banking models, built around multiple intermediaries and batch processing, often struggle to meet these expectations. This creates a growing disconnect between how global commerce operates and how payments are executed.

Instant cross-border payments are intended to address this. Near real-time settlement brings payment flows closer to the tempo of modern business, but speed alone isn’t enough. Confidence and transparency matter just as much: certainty around when funds will arrive, an overview of costs, and assurance that transactions are being processed securely and in line with regulatory requirements.

Delivering this capability across the US–Mexico corridor isn’t straightforward. Payments must move between distinct domestic payment systems, currencies and regulatory regimes. Compliance obligations such as anti-money laundering controls, sanctions screening and customer verification need to be embedded directly into the payment flow, while liquidity and foreign exchange risks must be managed carefully. Coordinating these elements in real time places significant demands on infrastructure and operational resilience.

Regulatory frameworks play an important role in supporting this transition. Clear standards around data protection, risk management and settlement finality help reduce uncertainty and create the conditions for innovation to scale responsibly. As new entrants and large technology firms expand their presence in payments, well-defined regulatory expectations are integral to a more stable and balanced ecosystem. 

Experience from other regions highlight that interoperability is a practical way forward. In Europe, several domestic instant payment schemes have opted to connect existing systems rather than replace them. Initiatives like the European Payments Alliance (EuroPA) link national schemes including Bizum in Spain, Bancomat Pay in Italy and MB Way in Portugal. Each scheme continues to operate within its domestic framework, while interoperability enables users to send and receive instant payments across borders with minimal friction. While regulatory and market structures differ across regions, the European experience illustrates how interoperability can be achieved without replacing domestic payment schemes.

This approach has demonstrated that connecting established infrastructures through shared standards and cooperative models can be more effective than attempting to impose uniform systems in isolation. Interoperability allows domestic schemes to preserve their strengths while extending reach across borders at scale.

Against this backdrop, efforts to modernise high-volume corridors are gaining pace. This reflects wider recognition across the industry that this corridor requires infrastructure capable of supporting faster, more reliable settlement. Getnet Platforms is actively developing instant cross-border payment capabilities between the United States and Mexico. We understand that cross-border payments are becoming increasingly significant as businesses operate on a global level. With the backing of Santander, our experienced operations team and platform, alongside GetNet’s capabilities such as multichannel acceptance, multi-country processing, multicurrency servicing, we’re well positioned to support merchants at scale.

For businesses managing large cross-border volumes, the implications are practical rather than theoretical. Faster settlement improves working capital efficiency and reduces uncertainty around cash positions. Real-time confirmation strengthens supplier relationships and limits the need for manual reconciliation. Over time, these changes support more resilient and efficient cross-border operations.

External factors such as geopolitical and trade-related developments will continue to influence corridors like between the United States and Mexico. While payment infrastructure can’t remove these pressures, reliable and transparent settlement mechanisms can help businesses operate with greater confidence as policy and regulatory conditions evolve.

Instant cross-border payments are no longer a faraway ambition. The necessary technology and frameworks are gradually being put in place. The challenge now is around execution: applying them effectively across complex corridors by aligning infrastructure, regulation and operational processes with the realities of global business.

As our core payments engine, the Payments Hub is progressively strengthening our cross-border capabilities across key corridors. Implementation is phased and varies by country, in line with local regulatory and infrastructure requirements. Our SaaS and API first technology, global compliance tools and experienced operations team are combined with Santander’s banking infrastructure to support reliable execution at scale. As a result, we offer a reliable and streamlined cross-border platform which give our partners a competitive edge for their global operations.

Felipe Peñacoba

CEO of Payments Hub, Santander Group’s global payments platform