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INFRASTRUCTURE UPGRADES AND POLICYDEVELOPMENT FOR ENHANCED TRADE FACILITATION JULY 2026 ADVANCING DIGITAL PAYMENTSIN NEPAL INFRASTRUCTURE UPGRADES AND POLICYDEVELOPMENT FOR ENHANCED TRADE FACILITATION JULY 2026 Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 IGO license (CC BY 3.0 IGO) © 2026 Asian Development Bank6 ADB Avenue, Mandaluyong City, 1550 Metro Manila, PhilippinesTel +63 2 8632 4444; Fax +63 2 8636 2444www.adb.org Some rights reserved. Published in 2026. ISBN 978-92-9277-849-1 (print); 978-92-9277-850-7 (PDF); 978-92-9277-851-4 (e-book)Publication Stock No. TCS260271-2DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.22617/TCS260271-2 The views expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views and policiesof the Asian Development Bank (ADB) or its Board of Governors or the governments they represent. ADB does not guarantee the accuracy of the data included in this publication and accepts no responsibility for anyconsequence of their use. The mention of specific companies or products of manufacturers does not imply that theyare endorsed or recommended by ADB in preference to others of a similar nature that are not mentioned. By making any designation of or reference to a particular territory or geographic area in this document, ADB does notintend to make any judgments as to the legal or other status of any territory or area. This publication is available under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 IGO license (CC BY 3.0 IGO)https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/igo/. By using the content of this publication, you agree to be boundby the terms of this license. For attribution, translations, adaptations, and permissions, please read the provisionsand terms of use at https://www.adb.org/terms-use#openaccess. This CC license does not apply to non-ADB copyright materials in this publication. If the material is attributedto another source, please contact the copyright owner or publisher of that source for permission to reproduce it.ADB cannot be held liable for any claims that arise as a result of your use of the material. Please contact pubsmarketing@adb.org if you have questions or comments with respect to content, or if you wishto obtain copyright permission for your intended use that does not fall within these terms, or for permission to usethe ADB logo. Corrigenda to ADB publications may be found at http://www.adb.org/publications/corrigenda. Notes: In this publication, “$” refers to United States dollars, “₹” refers to Indian rupees, “NRs” refers to Nepalese rupees,and “B” refers to baht.ADB recognizes “China” as the People’s Republic of China. Cover design by Ingrid Schroder. Tables, Figures, and BoxesAcknowledgmentsAbbreviationsExecutive Summary I.Introduction1Country Context1Report Objectives, Structure, and Methodology2 II.The State of Nepal’s Digital Payment Ecosystem4The Financial Landscape4The Payments Landscape7The Digital Landscape: Connectivity, Access, and Affordability13The Digital Readiness of Businesses15Policies and Regulations for Digital Financial Services16Key Challenges22 III.Learnings from Country-Level Digital Finance Initiatives24Highlights from Digital Payments Implementations Across the Globe24Analysis of Success Factors and Challenges: Lessons for Nepal31 IV.Recommendations34Trade Facilitation Priorities34Broader Digital Payment System Recommendations35High-Level Implementation Road Map36Stakeholder Coordination and Monitoring38Success Metrics for Trade Facilitation39 Appendixes 1Stakeholder Interviews402Primary Stakeholders in Nepal’s Digital Payment Ecosystem41 Tables, Figures, and Boxes Tables 1Summary of Key Challenges232Summary of Critical Success Factors333High-Level Implementation Road Map36A1List of Stakeholder Interviews40A2List of Primary Stakeholders in Nepal’s Digital Payment Ecosystem41 Figures 1High-Level Architecture of the Retail Payment Switch112Number of Firms by Size15 Boxes 1Formalizing Remittances Through Digital Wallets82The Nepal Clearing House Limited’s Approach to Payment System Interoperability93Technical Integration Challenges in Nepal’s Digital Payment Ecosystem104Diverging Perspectives on Payment System Interoperability in Nepal125The India–Nepal Payment Corridor Opportunity13 Acknowledgments This publication was prepared under the Asian Development Bank (ADB) regional technical assistance projecton Innovative Knowledge Solutions in South Asia. The work was developed under the guidance of the ADBproject team, with Amit Tendulkar, Finance Sector Department of the Singapore Office leading content reviewand development; the South Asia Operations Coordination Unit responsible for administrative management,publication production, and dissemination; and the South Asia Subregional Economic Cooperation Secretariatsupporting stakeholder engagement. The project team acknowledges the contributions of consultants and subject matter experts from AccessPartnership Ltd., who undertook the research and analytical