TBX, formerly known as TransBnk, has launched Business to Business (B2B) bill payments on its TrustHub platform through Bharat Connect for Business on 22 September 2026. The integration connects TBX directly to NPCI Bharat BillPay Ltd (NBBL), with IDFC FIRST Bank acting as the Sponsor Operating Unit. It allows businesses to discover invoices, pay them and track payment status on one interoperable rail instead of using separate systems.
What Is Bharat Connect for Business?
Bharat Connect for Business is the Business to Business arm of Bharat Connect run by NPCI Bharat BillPay Ltd. It is an interoperable invoice exchange rail that covers ordering, invoicing, payment, settlement, reconciliation and credit. Buyers, sellers and banks interact on one network without changing their accounting software.
In simple terms, B2B means one business selling to another business. Bharat Connect for Business handles the full cycle of such trade. It starts with the purchase order and invoice and ends with payment and account matching. The platform describes this in two parts. The first part is procure to pay, which is the buyer side journey from ordering goods to paying for them. The second part is quote to cash, which is the seller side journey from giving a price quote to receiving money.
A key feature of Bharat Connect for Business is interoperability. A supplier can raise an invoice, a credit note or a debit note on its own accounting or business application. The buyer can view and accept it on a completely different application. There is no need for direct software linkage between the two sides and no need to enter the same data twice. Information syncs in near real time across the network.
The network works only with verified business entities. This creates a ready pool of checked buyers and sellers. The platform also builds a trade credit score based on digital invoicing and payment behaviour. This score helps businesses judge the reliability of a new partner and reduces the need for separate background checks. Buyer accepted invoices also become verified records. Banks and non banking finance companies can use these records to offer working capital loans without asking for fresh documents or extra security.
What Are B2B Payments and How Do They Work?
B2B payments are payments made by one business to another for goods or services supplied on invoice. The buyer receives the invoice, verifies it, approves it and then pays through a bank or business application. The supplier then matches the payment to the invoice and updates its accounts.
In a manual system, each of these steps happens separately. Invoices move over email or paper. Follow ups happen over phone. Payments happen through a different channel. Matching of invoices and payments happens by hand at the end of the month. This causes delays, errors and high back office costs, especially for firms with many repeat suppliers or dealers.
Bharat Connect for Business changes this flow by linking all steps on one rail. The buyer pays from any interface such as a bank application, an enterprise resource planning system or a business application. Due date reminders go out automatically. The supplier sees the payment status in real time. Every invoice, payment, credit note and debit note is matched automatically. Accounts payable on the buyer side and accounts receivable on the seller side update in near real time on both sides.
B2B Versus B2C Payments
B2C means business to consumer, where a business collects payment from an individual customer. B2B means business to business, where both the payer and the receiver are firms. The two models differ in value, frequency and process.
| Feature | B2B Payments | B2C Payments |
|---|---|---|
| Parties involved | Buyer firm pays supplier firm | Individual customer pays business |
| Basis of payment | Purchase order and tax invoice | Utility bill, fee or retail bill |
| Ticket size | Usually large and recurring | Usually small and frequent |
| Verification needed | Invoice approval and account matching required | Instant bill fetch and pay is enough |
| Credit linkage | Accepted invoices can support business loans | Payment history rarely supports business loans |
What Exactly Did TBX Launch on TrustHub?
TBX has enabled B2B bill payments inside TrustHub, its corporate banking infrastructure platform. TrustHub already offers banking connectivity, treasury and liquidity management, payments, collections and reconciliation to companies and financial institutions. With this launch, B2B invoice discovery, payment and transaction status tracking have been added to the same window.
Under the integration, TBX TrustHub will operate as a Participating Agent Institution (P-AI) within the Bharat Connect for Business ecosystem. A Participating Agent Institution is an approved technology participant that connects businesses to the central system and handles the customer facing part of the journey. TBX has built a direct technology integration with NBBL for this role. IDFC FIRST Bank will act as the Sponsor Operating Unit. A Sponsor Operating Unit is a bank authorised under the system to sponsor an agent institution, handle clearing and settlement support and ensure compliance with system rules.
On the new platform, sellers such as manufacturers, distributors and service providers can present invoices and receive payments. Buyers such as retailers, dealers and other business customers can discover invoices raised on them, approve them and pay. Both sides can track the transaction ID and payment status without moving to a separate portal. TBX has said the offering is aimed at businesses with recurring B2B payment needs across manufacturing, distribution, retail, fast moving consumer goods, pharmaceuticals, automotive and education.
What Is Bharat Connect and How Does the Bharat Bill Payment System Work?
Bharat Connect is India’s centralised bill payments platform that connects billers, banks, agents and customers on one interoperable network. It was conceptualised by the Reserve Bank of India and was earlier called Bharat BillPay. It supports one time and recurring collections with instant confirmation.
BBPS is the short form of Bharat Bill Payment System. It is the underlying system and rulebook for interoperable bill payments in India. Bharat BillPay and Bharat Connect are brand names for the same platform operated under this system. NBBL is the short form of NPCI Bharat BillPay Ltd, the company that runs the platform on a day to day basis.
Bharat Connect is neither fully government nor fully private in the commercial sense. The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) is an umbrella organisation for retail payments set up as a not for profit company under Section 8 of the Companies Act, 2013. NPCI was incorporated on 19 December 2008 on the initiative of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the Indian Banks Association (IBA) under the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007. NPCI is headquartered in Mumbai. NBBL is a wholly owned subsidiary of NPCI. It was incorporated on 10 December 2020 to operate the Bharat Bill Payment Central Unit, which is the single authorised entity that runs the system, sets business standards, manages clearing and settlement and handles complaint redressal.
The system works through a tiered structure. The Central Unit sits at the centre. Bharat Bill Payment Operating Units (BBPOUs) are banks and non bank entities authorised by RBI to function as operational units. They onboard billers and agent networks. Agent institutions provide customer facing touchpoints such as bank apps, business software and physical outlets. When a customer starts a payment, the details go to the Central Unit, then to the relevant operating unit and biller. The biller updates the account and sends back confirmation with SMS or receipt. The network supports more than 22,000 billers across over 25 categories including electricity, gas, water, telecom, broadband, direct to home television, loan repayment, credit card payment, insurance premium, education fees, FASTag recharge, municipal taxes and forex.
| Year | Milestone in Bharat Connect History |
|---|---|
| 2013 | RBI sets up GIRO Advisory Committee to study integrated bill payment system |
| 2014 to 2015 | RBI issues guidelines and framework for Bharat Bill Payment System |
| 2016 | Pilot launch of the system |
| 2017 | System goes live with select payment categories |
| 2018 | Formal brand launch of Bharat BillPay |
| 2019 | Expansion from 5 categories to more than 20 categories |
| 2021 | NBBL incorporated to operate the Central Unit |
| 2024 | Bharat BillPay rebranded as Bharat Connect |
The Roles of NBBL, NPCI and IDFC FIRST Bank
NBBL functions as the Central Unit in this launch. It provides the rails, the technical standards and the settlement framework. NPCI, as the parent body, provides the larger retail payments architecture that also includes Unified Payments Interface (UPI), RuPay, Immediate Payment Service and National Automated Clearing House. UPI is one of the payment modes that can be used to pay a bill raised on Bharat Connect, but the two are not the same. UPI moves money between accounts. Bharat Connect manages the full bill lifecycle of bill fetch, presentment, payment, confirmation and dispute handling.
IDFC FIRST Bank, in the role of Sponsor Operating Unit, provides the banking sponsorship that allows TBX TrustHub to participate as an agent institution. This is the standard model in the ecosystem. A technology platform brings business clients and workflows, while a licensed bank brings settlement accounts and regulatory compliance.
Who Is TBX and What Is TrustHub?
TBX is a Mumbai based financial infrastructure company that builds corporate banking technology for banks, enterprises, financial technology firms and non banking finance companies. The full legal name of the operator is TransBnk Solutions Private Limited. The company was founded in 2022 and rebranded from TransBnk to TBX in 2026. Its founders are Vaibhav Tambe, Sachin Gupta, Pulak Jain and Lavin Kotian, who hold the roles of Chief Executive Officer, Chief Product Officer, Chief Business Officer and Chief Technology Officer.
TBX describes itself as a transaction banking platform. Transaction banking means the set of banking services that companies use every day to manage money, such as cash management, payments, collections, escrow accounts, trade finance and supply chain finance. TBX offers these services through software platforms and more than 1,400 application programming interfaces. An application programming interface is a software link that lets two systems talk to each other without manual work.
TrustHub is the TBX platform for unified multi bank operations. It allows a company to connect to multiple banks, view balances, move funds, manage mandates and reconcile accounts from one dashboard. The new B2B bill payments capability sits inside TrustHub. This means a finance team can now handle invoice payments on the same screen where it handles treasury, payments and reconciliation, rather than logging into separate biller portals or accounting tools.
Bharat Connect Versus UPI and Other Payment Options
Bharat Connect is often confused with UPI, BHIM and private bill platforms. The differences are important. UPI is a fund transfer rail developed by NPCI that moves money instantly between bank accounts. BHIM is a mobile application that uses UPI. Private platforms offer bill payment as a service to customers. Bharat Connect is the central infrastructure that standardises how bills are fetched, presented, paid and settled across all such apps and banks.
| System | What It Does | Operator | Example of Use |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bharat Connect or BBPS | Standardises bill fetch, presentment, payment, receipt and grievance redressal | NBBL under NPCI | Pay electricity bill or B2B invoice from any bank app with instant confirmation |
| UPI | Transfers money instantly between bank accounts | NPCI | Send money to a supplier or scan a QR code in a shop |
| BHIM | Mobile app to use UPI | NPCI | Pay a bill where UPI is selected as the payment mode inside Bharat Connect |
| Bank or fintech app | Customer facing channel for many services | Respective bank or company | Log in, choose bill payment and complete the transaction through Bharat Connect |
Access to Bharat Connect does not need a separate registration. A user can log in to a partner bank app or website, choose bill payment, select the biller category and name, enter the bill reference number, check the fetched bill, choose a payment mode and confirm. Physical payment is also possible through bank branches and agent outlets. For businesses, access is expanding through accounting software. Integration with Tally Prime and Zoho Books allows invoices to flow directly between accounting books and the Bharat Connect network. Each transaction generates a transaction ID and reference number that can be used to check transaction status and download receipts online.
Why This Launch Matters for Businesses and Banks
For businesses, the gain is lower cost and faster cash flow. Manual invoice handling locks staff time in data entry, follow ups and month end matching. Automated reminders reduce missed due dates. Real time visibility reduces disputes over whether an invoice was received or paid. Automatic matching of invoices and payments keeps books clean and audit ready. For small suppliers, verified digital invoices improve access to credit because lenders can trust buyer approved bills.
For banks, the gain is richer data and deeper client ties. When buyer approved invoices flow through an interoperable rail, banks can see real trade behaviour and offer better priced working capital. Embedding B2B payments inside corporate banking dashboards also helps banks retain business clients who would otherwise split work across many portals.
The launch fits a wider push in September 2026. The Global Fintech Fest 2026 was held at the Jio World Centre in Mumbai from 8 to 11 September 2026. At the event, the Central Bank of India introduced Bharat Connect for Business as the first public sector bank offering on the network. Other participants showcased business applications, distributor onboarding tools and enterprise software linkages on the same rail. NBBL had earlier worked to extend interoperable B2B connectivity to the 43 lakh micro, small and medium enterprises in Gujarat. The TBX integration adds a transaction banking platform to this growing network and signals that B2B bill payments are moving from pilot stage to wider business use.
Key Takeaways
- TBX TrustHub launched B2B bill payments on 22 September 2026 through Bharat Connect for Business as a Participating Agent Institution with direct NBBL integration.
- IDFC FIRST Bank acts as the Sponsor Operating Unit for the TBX TrustHub integration on the Bharat Connect network.
- BBPS stands for Bharat Bill Payment System, which was rebranded as Bharat Connect in 2024 and now connects over 22,000 billers across more than 25 categories.
- NBBL, incorporated on 10 December 2020 and headquartered in Mumbai, is a wholly owned subsidiary of NPCI, which was incorporated on 19 December 2008 under the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007.
- Bharat Connect for Business covers the full procure to pay and quote to cash cycle with automatic reconciliation and trade credit scores that help banks lend against buyer accepted invoices.
- TBX, operated by TransBnk Solutions Private Limited founded in 2022 in Mumbai, runs TrustHub with over 1,400 APIs for cash management, escrow, payments and reconciliation.
