Catalyst Corporate Credit Union in Plano, Texas has acquired a strategic ownership stake in Neural Payments, deepening an existing partnership as the organizations work to expand digital payments capabilities for credit unions.
The investment will allow Neural Payments, a fintech company that provides financial institutions with payment solutions, to accelerate development while giving Catalyst greater influence over the partnership's product roadmap as it works to integrate digital, instant and traditional payment services through its Open Payments Hub. Financial terms of the investment were not disclosed.
"Catalyst has always been focused on building the infrastructure credit unions need to compete – today and in the future," Bruce Fox, president/CEO for Catalyst, said. "In Neural Payments, we saw an opportunity to accelerate payment innovation for the credit union industry, tying together Catalyst's existing payments ecosystem and financial technology investments with the new ideas and extensive digital banking partnerships Neural Payments had established."
Catalyst, which has $6.5 billion in assets, and Neural Payments previously partnered to deliver embedded digital payment capabilities within mobile and online banking platforms. The new ownership is intended to better align digital payment experiences with the underlying payment rails, data access and settlement capabilities.
The combination of capabilities from Neural Payments and Catalyst gives credit unions access to a modular digital payments platform that supports peer-to-peer payments, one-to-many payouts, instant payments and other emerging payment use cases. Catalyst and Neural Payments are aligned on a multi-year roadmap aimed at expanding payment functionality for credit unions without requiring additional integrations or partners.
Planned initiatives include expanded instant payment use cases such as real-time funding and payouts for both consumer and business transactions. The roadmap also includes enhanced support for auto lending and dealer payments to enable faster settlement at the point of sale, along with business disbursements and outbound payments embedded directly within digital banking platforms.
Future developments are expected to include digital wallet capabilities and support for emerging payment models such as stablecoin and tokenized value as demand evolves. The companies also plan continued expansion across multiple payment rails, including FedNow, RTP, ACH, wire, and debit and credit networks, through a unified digital interface.
The initiatives build on Catalyst's existing payments infrastructure, which connects digital banking channels with payment rails and settlement systems.
Catalyst has been pursuing a long-term strategy of expanding its payments capabilities for credit unions through a mix of proprietary technology, strategic partnerships and targeted investments. The approach is intended to help credit unions deliver more advanced digital payment options while keeping pace with larger financial institutions.
"This isn't about a single product or rail, it's about building a future‑ready payments foundation," Fox added. "We're ensuring that credit unions can deliver the same sophisticated digital payment experiences as the largest banks, while maintaining the cooperative values that set them apart."
Micky Oppy, Neural Payments co-founder and CEO, said that Catalyst has been an ideal strategic partner.
"This investment reflects a shared vision for the future of digital payments and allows us to move faster in delivering embedded, real‑time payment experiences that credit unions must deliver to remain competitive in a fast-moving financial services landscape," Oppy said.
Joyce Moed can be reached at joyce.moed@arc-network.com.
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