The Asian Clearing Union (ACU) was established on December 9, 1974, at the initiative of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP).

The primary objective of ACU, at the time of its establishment, was to secure regional co-operation regarding the clearing of eligible monetary transactions among the members of the Union to provide a system for clearing payments among the member countries on a multilateral basis.

Currently 2024, the members of ACU are the central banks of Bangladesh, Bhutan, Iran, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Myanmar.

The central banking authorities of member countries have issued detailed instructions and modalities for channeling the monetary transactions through the ACU.

Membership in the ACU is open to central banks located in the geographical area of ESCAP and non-ESCAP.