Case Study
Ukraine’s Instant Transparent Payment Network: Bridging Central Bank Settlement with the Stellar Network
About
Meet DCM
DCM is a technology provider specializing in payments and clearing infrastructure with tokenized assets including bank deposits, stablecoins, and CBDCs utilizing blockchain technology. Founded in 2022, DCM was approached by the Independent Association of the Banks of Ukraine (NABU) and Ukrainian banks to work together to deliver software services to modernize Ukraine’s financial infrastructure.
Challenge
Ukraine’s Costly and Centralized Payment Landscape
Despite growing consumer interest in digital payments, Ukraine relies heavily on cash and card networks. As reported by the National Bank of Ukraine, the country’s payments sector remains dominated by a handful of large institutions and expensive card networks.
72% cash usage among Ukrainians as recently as 2023
Top five banks make up ~90% of the card payment market
Commercial merchants pay 1.2-1.6% transaction fees plus $10 monthly fee
Small and mid-sized institutions have limited opportunities to compete for acquiring services and rely on card networks for last-mile payment delivery
A lack of competition and costly global payments have created a self-reinforcing cycle: as dependence on established networks grew, operational costs increased, and these expenses were inevitably passed to end users. Mid-sized banks find themselves unable to offer competitive commercial pricing which forces merchants into expensive relationships with the card networks.
Ukraine's situation has become more complex with the ongoing conflict and international support flowing into the country. The World Bank has estimated reconstruction costs at over $411 billion over the next decade, creating unprecedented demands for:
Transparent fund distribution to satisfy donor requirements
Auditable payment trails to prevent fraud and misallocation
Cost-effective transfers to maximize aid impact
Real-time monitoring capabilities for government and NGO oversight
Traditional cross-border payment systems, with their opacity and high costs, are unequipped to handle these requirements. The risk of lost or missing funds for both everyday transfers and humanitarian aid opens the door to smarter, faster, and more transparent payment solutions.
Innovators are beginning to recognize the consumer and market trends shifting in favor of digital payments. Consumer interest and demand continue to grow with increased use of mobile banking, peer-to-peer applications, and merchant-led alternatives to cash transactions.
Solution
A Blockchain Solution Delivering Instant and Transparent Payments for Banks
DCM recognized that Ukraine's challenges required more than incremental improvement—they demanded fundamental infrastructure change. DCM recognized the ability of a public blockchain network to enable banks to issue payments with transparency, security, and near-instant settlement. Utilizing its dual digital platform, DCM developed an instant payments solution on the Stellar network that powers payments that settle in less than five seconds.
The Transparent Network (TPN) was tested in live production in late 2024. It entered the Ukrainian market, as one of the first instant payment networks enabling transparent, traceable, and auditable payments for consumers, merchants, and institutions. TPN operates under a joint agreement as a consortium of banks, united under the NABU membership.
TPN offers institutional-grade infrastructure with:
- API-first architecture enabling seamless integration with legacy banking systems
- Enterprise-level security meeting international banking standards
- ISO 20022 compliance-by-default framework addressing regulatory requirements
- 24/7 global accessibility through blockchain network uptime
Combined with the Stellar network’s ability to handle high transaction volumes, global interoperability with traditional finance rails, TPN integrates directly with the National Bank of Ukraine Electronic Payment System. Participating banks can initiate and authorize account-to-account transfers 24/7 from anywhere in the world. By operating as a duplicate copy of the existing bank account on the centralized core system, together these two copies manage the blockchain asset. Through its intuitive user interface on top of a robust analytics and transparency tool, TPN enables government and financial organizations to monitor payment journeys with reduced fraud and errors.
Solution
Strategic Launch
Within the initial year of operation, TPN has proven that instant payment based banking infrastructure can drive innovation and extend access to new market segments, enhancing competition. TPN was thoughtfully integrated into existing banking infrastructure to accelerate adoption and minimize implementation risk.
- Partnership with city24: In the first months of operation, TPN partnered with one of Ukraine's largest payment terminal networks to offer promotions for Ukrainian consumers. This incentivized initial adoption and encouraged repeated usage.
- Bank-driven adoption: Rather than imposing the system top-down, TPN's voluntary and decentralized membership approach allowed banks to participate based on their own assessment of value, creating authentic market demand.
Impact
Initial Results
Initial results as reported by TPN indicate that the payments network is establishing a new model for financial infrastructure.
- Merchants report a 70% reduction in acquiring costs through elimination of card network fees.
- Institutions have reported a 60% reduction in transaction costs and increased customer retention and satisfaction.
- Donor organizations report a 20% savings in reduced transaction costs as compared to traditional rails.
- Consumer feedback described the network as “convenient” and “fast” with participating banks reporting improved customer satisfaction scores and increased digital payment adoption rates.
TPN’s model proves that blockchain-based infrastructure can deliver enterprise-grade payment processing while providing the transparency and cost efficiency required for global finance.
Transparent Network is about the sovereignty of Ukraine. When the full-scale invasion began in 2022, we saw the risks of what would happen if something were to disappear. This is precisely why we need to develop our Ukrainian payment solution.
Illya Klimovich, Deputy Chairman of MTB BANK and Coordinator of Transparent Network
Benefits
Key Advantages of TPN
Accountability
TPN provides a public instant payments solution to trace funds on an immutable ledger reducing fraud and instances of missing funds.
Traceability
TPN operates on a public blockchain which operates 24/7 and can be accessed by government entities and NGOs. Transactions can be fully audited.
Interoperability
TPN’s core software operates between traditional banking clearing systems and the Stellar network’s ledger without replacing existing systems to reduce implementation risk.
Enabling Competition
By providing a locally-owned and operated alternative to dominant card networks, smaller banks can access lower-cost payments through TPN.