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Covenant University (Nigeria), USIU-Africa (Kenya), and University of Cape Town (South Africa) join North American, European, and Australian institutions to train next-generation fintech leaders on interoperable payments infrastructure.
The Interledger Foundation (ILF), an organization building and advocating for an interoperable payments network, has partnered with over 10 universities across North America, Europe, Australia, and Africa to bring open payments curriculum into the classroom.
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This initiative aims to build the next generation of payments leaders who understand where today’s financial systems fall short and how to build something better with open finance.
The new programs span three continents and include historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) in the United States, European interdisciplinary institutions, and African universities at the forefront of fintech innovation.
The Problem: A Fragmented, Costly, and Slow Global Payments Ecosystem
Today’s payments landscape is deeply fragmented. Most merchants must accept a mix of cash, credit cards, debit, buy now pay later options, and other digital payment methods to ensure point-of-sale limitations don’t block customers. Each method requires different technical capabilities and standalone integrations.
Everything coexists separately, but nothing inherently works together. There are few incentives to open the silos that keep them apart. The result is a fragmented, costly, and slow global payments ecosystem where money that could settle in seconds instead takes days.
The Solution: Interledger Protocol as Digital Public Infrastructure
The Interledger Foundation is addressing this challenge with a multi-country educational effort to promote interoperability by proliferating its Interledger Protocol (ILP) . This open-source network enables any currency to move freely across institutions and borders without the limitations characteristic of the current patchwork financial system.
When deployed at scale, ILP could serve as the foundation for digital public infrastructures (DPIs) similar to India’s UPI and Brazil’s Pix—but with cross-border capabilities.
University Partnership Programs Across Four Continents
North America
| Institution | Program Highlights |
|---|---|
| Alabama A&M University (USA) | Embedding open payments into credit-bearing business coursework through Dollarcraft program; students research financial inclusion challenges and build ILP-enabled digital banking prototypes alongside engineering students |
| Atlanta University Center Consortium (USA) | Uniting 25 HBCU students from Clark Atlanta University, Morehouse College, Morehouse School of Medicine, and Spelman College to design and prototype open payment solutions addressing systemic financial inequities |
| Benedict College (USA) | Launching ILP Pathways program with 150-hour internships; students then mentor local youth and help minority-owned businesses adopt open payment solutions |
| Bowie State University (USA) | Built a multi-campus open payments program engaging over 700 students across four continents through integrated coursework, micro-internships, and hackathon-style events; expanding to seven additional HBCUs nationwide |
Europe
| Institution | Program Highlights |
|---|---|
| The Hague University of Applied Sciences (Netherlands) | Launching an interdisciplinary course bridging finance, law, and technology—the first effort to build a European talent pipeline in open payments education |
Africa
| Institution | Program Highlights |
|---|---|
| Covenant University (Nigeria) | Launching two new courses dedicated to open payments and ILP; students gain hands-on experience building interoperable fintech solutions through innovation labs, hackathons, and community digital inclusion clinics |
| USIU-Africa (Kenya) | Integrating Interledger Protocol into entrepreneurship training and startup incubation in Nairobi; equipping 40 students to build financial inclusion solutions for Kenya’s underbanked communities |
| University of Cape Town (South Africa) | Embedded open payments into its Master’s in Financial Technology program; students build fully operational payment applications as capstone projects; launched a dedicated Financial Innovation Hub for fintech research across Africa |
Australia
| Institution | Program Highlights |
|---|---|
| Western Sydney University (Australia) | Integrating an eight-week ILP curriculum module into cybersecurity and business programs; students design and stress-test secure, interoperable fintech applications |
Beyond Universities: Expanding the Open Payments Ecosystem
“The next generation of leaders has the opportunity to build payment systems that improve the closed, siloed systems of the past. Working with these universities, we have the opportunity to instill in students the knowledge and tools they need to design for interoperability from day one, so open payments become the standard, rather than the exception,” said Briana Marbury, President and CEO of the Interledger Foundation.
These university partnerships are one part of a broader effort by the Interledger Foundation to build an open financial system where sending money is as simple as sending an email. ILF continues to expand its ecosystem through partnerships with organizations including:
- People’s Clearinghouse
- Paysys Labs
- Kanzu Finance
Investment in Open Payments Innovation
The Interledger Foundation has invested more than $21 million in over 200 projects across 42 countries, backing developers, entrepreneurs, artists, and innovators who are building solutions that remove barriers within outdated and restrictive financial systems.
The Vision: Open Payments as the Default
The goal of the university partnership initiative is to make open payments the default rather than the exception.
By equipping students with the knowledge and tools to design for interoperability from day one, ILF is building a talent pipeline that will shape the future of financial infrastructure for decades to come.
For other schools interested in getting involved, the Interledger Foundation will open a new call for applications later in the year. If students on campus are interested in spearheading open payments initiatives, the Interledger Foundation is currently accepting applications HERE.
