What is ASEAN Payment Connectivity and Why Does It Matter?
If you’ve ever travelled across Southeast Asia, you’ll know what we mean: juggling multiple currencies, worrying about foreign exchange rates, a slight fear your card might not work when you most need it… As you can imagine, the struggle is even bigger for international businesses working in this region: high fees for international transactions and slow settlements that eat into margins. And those are just a few of the challenges.
That’s where ASEAN Payment Connectivity (APC) comes in: to make cross-border payments as easy and quick as paying your local food delivery app. But how?
How APC makes cross-border payments seamless
With APC, you don’t need to carry a chunky billfold around or worry about card acceptance. Tourists and businesses alike can pay instantly in local currencies using just a QR code or a mobile number. Here’s what that means:
If you’re a Thai tourist in Singapore, you can just scan a QR code and pay for your fridge magnet directly from your Thai bank account.
If you’re a Philippine e-commerce seller, you can accept payments from Malaysian buyers without any extra setup.
The goal of APC is to make payments feel local, even when they’re not. “But what about transaction costs?”, you might wonder. Good news on that front, too!
How APC reduce transaction costs
As a payments company that aims to simplify the complexities of global payments, at CAJEROPAY, we often get asked about transaction costs. It’s something many clients wonder about, but that’s where APC shines: lower fees.
Right now, cross-border payments often rely on international card networks or SWIFT transfers, which come with potentially high charges. APC reduces that reliance by using regional rails instead.
So, for travelers, it means no more “hidden” card fees on every purchase. For SMEs, it means cheaper transactions and better margins.
The role of real-time settlement in APC cross-border payments
Another good thing about APC is that you can forget waiting days for funds to clear. With ASEAN Payment Connectivity, settlements are instant or near real-time.
This means:
More cash flow: businesses can reinvest faster.
Transparency: no more guessing when money will arrive.
Trust: partners across borders know funds are good immediately.
Why ASEAN Payment Connectivity matters for SMEs and e-commerce businesses
Small businesses and online sellers are set to gain the most from APC since quicker payments, lower fees and seamless cross-border transactions might not move the needle for corporations, but they’re a game-changer for SMEs because they allow them to:
Sell across ASEAN markets.
Expand into new regions without extra banking setups.
Compete with larger players who’ve long had access to better payment infrastructure.
Above everything else, APC helps bring more people into the digital economy by connecting local banks, e-wallets, and payment systems and lowering barriers for local SMEs. It’s another step toward ensuring digital payments are accessible to everyone, but not just a technical upgrade; it’s a shift in how money moves across the region. In short, ASEAN Payment Connectivity wants to make cross-border payments as easy as local ones, and that’s a win for everyone.
