By Eyasu Zekarias
EthSwitch, a share company fully owned by financial institutions in Ethiopia inks a memorandum of understanding with the National Payment Corporation of India (NPCI), to streamline a national payment system, which is backed by domestic transaction systems.
According to the share company’s CEO, Yilebes Addis, the payment gateway is a modern digital payment strategy which aims to encourage digital adoption among merchants and financial institutions.
“EthSwitch is serving as an online interoperable payment system, and will collaborate with financial institutions to establish a digital domestic payment system whilst enhancing transactions and enabling secure online payments,” the CEO pointed out, further explaining that since the two countries do have similar systems they can seamlessly pay through Unified Payment Interface (UPI) and Instant Payment Platform systems.
Through the card called EthSwitch Ethiopia, transactions can be made from financial institutions in India through an instant payment platform. Similarly, an Indian with a NPCI Rupee card can trade or withdraw money in Ethiopia through the UPI.
As Yilebes indicates, EthSwitch has already launched a national payment gateway and has completed the trial process of the same.
The National Payment Gateway is said to link customers’ bank accounts and enable third-party payments through credit cards, debit cards and mobile money.
EthSwitch, which announced the completion of the trial process, stated that payment gateway financial institutions and digital financial service providers can perform various payment options over the Internet, and that this had been implemented in certain financial institutions in the last three months.
EthSwitch, which is owned by private and public banks and digital financial institutions in Ethiopia, including the National Bank, aims to expand digital payments in Ethiopia and enable businesses and consumers to make e-commerce payments.
According to the company’s statements, the trial process of the National Payment Gateway has been ongoing since July 2023, after receiving approval from the National Bank.
