Irish banks are joining forces to launch a new person-to-person mobile payment service called Zippay in early 2026.

Available in Ireland, the in-app service will be offered through the existing mobile apps of banks in the country.

It will allow customers to send, request and split payments instantly with Zippay using the mobile phone numbers of their contacts who also use the service.

To send money, the service will not require consumers to set up a new payee or know their IBAN, BIC or account number.

The app will enable customers to send up to €1,000 per day and request up to €500 per transaction.

Brian Hayes, chief executive of the Banking & Payments Federation Ireland (BPFI), explained that the app aims to provide a quick and easy way to send and receive money or split expenses with friends, family and contacts who are also Zippay users.

“Eligible customers will be automatically enrolled in Zippay, which will appear in their personal banking app once the service launches next year,” he said.

The service, developed in collaboration with PayTech Nexi, will initially be available to over five million eligible customers of AIB, Bank of Ireland and PTSB.

Speaking about the launch Renato Martini, digital banking solutions director of Nexi Group said: “Built on an API-based architecture, Nexi has designed Zippay for scalability and future expansion with the goal of making the solution as widely available as possible to customers across Ireland.”

He added that, following the initial launch, Zippay will be offered on a non-discriminatory basis to all financial institutions providing IBAN account services and a mobile app to Irish consumers, while Nexi will manage the onboarding of eligible financial institutions wishing to join the service.

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