UPay scales card payments across global corridors with StraitsX issuing infrastructure
Challenge
Simplifying the infrastructure behind scalable card payments
UPay, established in 2023, is a fintech company dedicated to building a globally leading digital asset banking platform. It offers a one-stop solution covering crypto card issuance, crypto payment solutions and financial product services, supporting the integration of digital assets with traditional finance and the broader adoption of the digital economy.
As UPay looked to scale its card program across global payment corridors, the company needed to simplify the infrastructure behind card issuance while maintaining reliability, compliance, and customer experience expected in modern financial services.
This created operational complexity for UPay’s internal teams. Product, compliance, finance, and operations functions had to manage multiple dependencies across the card-program stack, which increased coordination costs and lengthened integration cycles.
For UPay, the objective was to bring a compliant, reliable, and scalable card program to market quickly, while keeping the customer experience simple. To do this effectively, UPay needed a partner that could help reduce the complexity behind card issuance without compromising regulatory standards, operational control, or the end-user experience.
StraitsX Approach
Full-stack issuing and processing infrastructure to support a growing card program
StraitsX partnered with UPay as its card-issuing infrastructure, processing, and network-enablement partner, supporting the underlying rails behind UPay’s card program.
Instead of having UPay manage multiple service providers across issuing, processing, compliance, settlement, and card-network connectivity, StraitsX helped bring these key layers together through a more integrated infrastructure model. This allowed UPay to simplify the backend of its card program while maintaining the operational control, compliance standards, and reliability required to support payments across global corridors.
Through StraitsX, UPay gained access to:
- Card issuance program support
- Issuing and processing infrastructure
- Card-network enablement
- Operational support for card program management and settlement
- A regulated issuing framework supporting compliant card-program operations
By leveraging StraitsX’s issuing framework, processing capabilities, network connectivity, and operational support, UPay was able to abstract the complexity behind card issuance. This helped streamline the partner ecosystem behind the program and gave UPay a stronger step to scale adoption, refine its user experience, and focus on product growth.
Rather than coordinating across a card-program stack, StraitsX support the critical infrastructure layers behind the scenes, from issuing and processing to settlement and program operations. This enabled UPay to move faster, reduce internal dependencies, and deliver a more seamless card experience to its users.
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For UPay’s users, the result is a more seamless and reliable card experience. For UPay’s internal teams, the collaboration reduced operational overhead, Compliance and operational foundation behind the card program.
This allowed UPay to focus more of its resources on customer experience, adoption, and differentiated product value, instead of the backend mechanics of card issuance.
Results and Benefits
US$148 million
Annual transaction volume surpassed
183
Countries and regions served
Registered user base grew 76.47% year on year
Monthly active users surpassed 7,000
Operational efficiency improved by 39% (supported by reduced infrastructure fragmentation and more streamlined program operations)
“StraitsX helped us move faster while reducing the complexity behind card issuance. Their infrastructure and regulatory framework enhanced UPay to scale our card program while keeping our focus where it matters most: customer experience, trust, and growth.”
Future Outlook
Expanding trusted digital payment experiences across high-growth markets
With StraitsX supporting the infrastructure layer behind its card program, UPay continues to scale with a more streamlined operating model, stronger compliance and a reliable foundation for future payment innovation.
Together, UPay and StraitsX are making trusted digital payment experiences more accessible, scalable, and seamless for consumers and businesses across high-growth markets.
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