Senior UK bank executives will meet this week to begin creating a domestic payments network to rival Visa and Mastercard.
The project aims to protect the economy if access to US-owned systems is ever disrupted.
The meeting will be chaired by Vim Maru of Barclays and will include major lenders and payment firms.
The industry-funded, government-backed plan has been discussed for years but gained urgency amid geopolitical tensions and fears over reliance on US infrastructure.
About 95% of UK card payments run through Visa or Mastercard.
Executives warn that losing those networks would severely disrupt daily transactions in a largely cashless economy.
Sanctions that cut off the same systems in Russia showed how quickly consumers can lose access to money.
The new company, known as DeliveryCo, will design the structure, leadership and funding model.
The Bank of England is developing the technical framework, with a launch expected around 2030.
Both Visa and Mastercard are involved in the talks and say they welcome competition.
Officials describe the plan as a resilience measure rather than a political response.
