E-invoicing in the US: the DBNA network, comparison with Peppol, participants and Global Interoperability Framework.
There is no federal mandate for e-invoicing in the United States. Even so, demand for standardised electronic invoice exchange is growing. Millions of invoices are still handled via paper, PDF and email, which drives cost, errors and slow payment. With the launch of the DBNA network (Digital Business Networks Alliance) in 2024, the US gained an open, standardised alternative that works much like Peppol in Europe.
DBNA stands for Digital Business Networks Alliance, a non-profit organisation that operates the open US e-invoicing network. The network lets businesses in the United States exchange electronic invoices regardless of which software they use.
The organisation was formally established in January 2024 by participants from the Business Payments Coalition, an initiative coordinated by the Federal Reserve. The aim was a market-driven answer to the lack of standardisation in US B2B invoicing.
DBNA uses the same four-corner model as Peppol: a sender routes an invoice through its Access Point, which forwards the document to the recipient's Access Point. The two Access Points find each other via a central directory (SML/SMP), similar to a digital phone book.
DBNA uses UBL (Universal Business Language) as the document format, derived from PINT (Peppol International Invoice). Besides invoices, the network supports credit notes, e-remittance (payment messages) and attachments via the Extended Invoice format.
Where Peppol in Europe uses Chamber of Commerce and VAT numbers, DBNA relies on US business identifiers:
DBNA grew out of the Business Payments Coalition (BPC), facilitated by the Federal Reserve. Its board includes representatives from large enterprises and service providers:
DBNA and Peppol share many technical building blocks. The main differences are governance, scale and legal context.
In Europe, legislation drives e-invoicing adoption, with the ViDA directive as the overarching framework. In the US, participation in DBNA is voluntary and driven by efficiency: lower processing cost, faster payment and fewer errors.
Peppol uses a central model where national Peppol Authorities oversee the network. DBNA uses a federated model without national authorities, which fits the US market culture where the private sector leads.
The Global Interoperability Framework (GIF) connects Peppol, DBNA and GENA (Global Exchange Network Alliance, Asia-Pacific) into one coherent global setup. It is not a separate network, but a shared set of standards that make cross-network exchange possible.
The common building blocks:
In practice, an invoice sent via Peppol can be delivered to a recipient on the DBNA network and vice versa, without format conversion. The Access Point on the sending side must be certified on both networks, or work with a partner that is.
DBNA is operational, but adoption is still limited. Important milestones:
Growth is driven by efficiency benefits for large enterprises and supply chains, not by legislation. The energy sector is an early mover, much like the public sector was for Peppol in Europe.
There are currently more than 10 certified Access Points active on the DBNA network. The current list is available on the DBNAlliance website.
eConnect participates in DBNA governance discussions, but there is no operational production routing over DBNA on our platform yet. While the number of active participants and transactions in the US remains limited, there is little practical benefit for eConnect customers in a DBNA connection.
Once adoption reaches a relevant level, eConnect can add DBNA to the PSB (Procurement Service Bus). The technical overlap with Peppol is large: the same protocols, similar document standards and the same four-corner model.
No. There is no federal mandate for e-invoicing in the United States. Adoption of DBNA is fully voluntary and driven by efficiency: lower processing cost, faster payment and fewer errors.
DBNA and Peppol share the same technical foundation (four-corner model, UBL, AS4), but differ in governance and scale. Peppol is steered centrally with national authorities; DBNA uses a federated model. Peppol operates in 65+ countries; DBNA focuses on the US market.
This is technically possible because both networks share the same building blocks (UBL, AS4, SMP v2, PINT). Several Service Providers are certified on both Peppol and DBNA and act as a bridge between the networks via the Global Interoperability Framework.
eConnect is following DBNA closely and participates in governance, but there is no operational production routing over DBNA on our platform yet. Once adoption reaches sufficient scale, eConnect can add DBNA to the PSB thanks to the strong technical overlap with Peppol.
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