Neural Payments Wins Best Of Show At FinovateFall 2026 With Visa Alias Directory Demo
Neural Payments won Best of Show at FinovateFall 2026 with a live demo of Visa Alias Directory, showing how credit unions and community banks can send real-time payments using only a phone number, email or app handle.
Neural Payments won Best of Show at FinovateFall 2026 for a live, on-stage demonstration of real-time payments built with Visa Direct and the new Visa Alias Directory.
The demo showed how credit unions and community banks can let members send and receive real-time payments using only a phone number, email address or app handle, without replacing existing core systems.
What We Showed On Stage
Community banks and credit unions have spent years watching their cardholders leave for third-party apps to move money. At Finovate, we showed a different path: a fully white-labeled P2P experience inside the institution’s own digital banking app, connected to real-time payment rails.
- Send by alias. Visa Alias Directory looks up the recipient securely by phone number, email or app handle, so the sender never needs a card or account number.
- Real-time delivery. Payments route over Visa Direct rails to eligible debit cards, bank accounts and digital wallets.
- Cross-wallet reach. Recipients can be reached in the wallets they already use, not just on debit cards.
- No redirects, no downloads. The whole experience stays under the institution’s brand.
Why It Matters For Credit Unions And Community Banks
For financial institutions sending payments, alias-based sending means a faster time to market, a simpler implementation and the modern payment experience members expect.
“Financial institutions shouldn’t have to choose between innovation and stability. Our collaboration with Visa Direct gives credit unions and community banks a clear, proven path to real-time payments, and Visa Alias Directory takes that experience to the next level.”
Mick Oppy, Co-Founder and CEO, Neural Payments
One Integration To Visa Direct, FedNow And RTP
Neural Payments builds real-time payment infrastructure for credit unions and community banks. It connects financial institutions to Visa Direct, FedNow, RTP and regional debit networks through a single, compliant integration, with every payment screened by the Fraud Rules Engine.
Thank you to the Visa Direct team, the Finovate team and everyone who voted for Neural Payments, and congratulations to equipifi and the other Best of Show winners.
Watch the P2P demo or book a demo to see the full flow.
Frequently Asked Questions
What did Neural Payments win at FinovateFall 2026?
Neural Payments won Best of Show at FinovateFall 2026 for a live demonstration of real-time, alias-based payments built with Visa Direct and Visa Alias Directory.
What is Visa Alias Directory?
Visa Alias Directory connects payment senders to recipients through a secure lookup of an alias, such as a phone number or email address, and routes the payment in real time over Visa Direct rails. Senders do not need the recipient's card or account number.
How does Neural Payments work with Visa Direct?
Neural Payments connects banks and credit unions to Visa Direct through a single integration, enabling real-time push payments to eligible debit cards, bank accounts and digital wallets from inside the institution's own digital banking app.
Do credit unions need to replace their core to offer this?
No. The FinovateFall demo showed credit unions and community banks enabling real-time, alias-based payments without replacing existing core systems.
