What happened
- Specific facts/numbers: The Federal Reserve’s April 8, 2026 proposal would let FedNow participants use intermediaries other than Reserve Banks, enabling the U.S. leg of cross-border payments over FedNow; comments were due within 60 days after Federal Register publication.
- Institutions involved: Support cited in the story excerpt comes from Stripe, Visa, Wise and industry trade groups, while the proposal itself comes from the Federal Reserve Board and concerns the FedNow Service.
- Regulatory/technical context: FedNow went live on July 20, 2023 as an instant-payment service for U.S. depository institutions; under the current framework, a FedNow transfer can include only two U.S. banks, so the proposed Regulation J change would add intermediary flexibility similar to correspondent-bank use in cross-border flows.
- What to watch next: Watch for whether the Federal Reserve finalizes the Regulation J amendments after reviewing comments; no specific implementation date or next milestone was identified in the read material.
Why it matters
If adopted, the change could let banks and fintech partners use FedNow for the domestic settlement leg of cross-border payments, potentially improving speed and product design without turning FedNow itself into a full international network.
HKMA Relevance
Indirect: Any FedNow move into supporting the U.S. leg of cross-border transfers could affect global payment-rail interoperability and correspondent-banking patterns relevant to Hong Kong institutions serving U.S. corridors.