Nium and Emirates NBD Deepen Partnership to Power Real-Time Cross-Border Payments in MENAT

Expanded partnership now enables seamless payouts via Emirates Islamic Bank, with KSA launch underway

FRANKFURT, Germany, Oct. 1, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Nium, the leading global infrastructure for real-time cross-border payments, and Emirates NBD, a leading banking group in the MENAT (Middle East, North Africa and Türkiye) region, today announced significant progress in their strategic partnership first unveiled in 2024.

Since its inception, the collaboration has empowered Emirates NBD customers with seamless, cost-effective, and reliable international transfers. The service has now been extended to Emirates Islamic Bank, further broadening access to real-time payouts across the UAE.

In parallel, Emirates NBD is preparing to expand this offering to its customers in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia through Emirates NBD Bank KSA, subject to regulatory approval from the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA).

"Over the past year, our partnership with Emirates NBD has continued to scale, enabling real-time money movement from the Middle East to the world," said Anupam Pahuja, Chief Revenue Officer at Nium. "With the addition of Emirates Islamic Bank and preparations in Saudi Arabia, we are delivering on our vision to make global payments instantaneous, accessible, and cost-efficient for all."

Marwan Hadi, Group Head, Retail Banking and Wealth Management at Emirates NBD, commented: "Emirates NBD has always embraced innovation to enhance customer experience. Our deepening collaboration with Nium strengthens our ability to provide fast, secure, and affordable remittance services across multiple markets. Extending the partnership to Emirates Islamic Bank and soon to Saudi Arabia reflects our commitment to leading the next chapter of cross-border payments in the region."

The UAE continues to be one of the world's largest remittance hubs, with outbound flows surpassing USD 50 billion in 2023 according to the World Bank. With expatriates making up nearly 90% of the UAE population, demand for faster and more affordable international transfers continues to rise.

Nium's white paper, Payments in the Middle East: The Next Frontier, highlights the region's increasing reliance on strategic collaborations between banks and fintechs to unlock efficiency, inclusion, and growth. This expansion of the Emirates NBD–Nium partnership embodies that vision, paving the way for innovation and harmonized regulation across MENAT.

About Nium

Nium, the leading global infrastructure for real-time cross-border payments, was founded on the mission to deliver the global payments infrastructure of tomorrow, today. With the onset of the global economy, its payments infrastructure is shaping how banks, fintechs, and businesses everywhere collect, convert, and disburse funds instantly across borders. Its payout network supports 100 currencies and spans 190+ countries, 100 of which in real-time. Funds can be disbursed to accounts, wallets, and cards and collected locally in 40 markets. Nium's growing card issuance business is already available in 34 countries. Nium holds regulatory licenses and authorizations in more than 40 countries, enabling seamless onboarding, rapid integration, and compliance – independent of geography. The company is co-headquartered in San Francisco and Singapore. 

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