The Bank of Ghana used its keynote address at the African Prosperity Dialogue 2026 to frame cross-border payments as essential trade infrastructure for the African Continental Free Trade Area and to call for more African trade to be settled in African currencies using African payment rails. The speech highlighted the central bank’s focus on improving cross-border interoperability while maintaining financial stability, consumer protection and trust. The address pointed to persistent frictions in intra-African payments, including transaction costs of 7 to 10 percent versus a global average of about 3 percent, settlement times ranging from days to weeks, and more than 80 percent of intra-African payments routed through correspondent banks outside the continent in foreign currencies at an estimated annual cost of USD 5.3 billion. Against this backdrop, the Bank cited Ghana’s domestic interoperable payments ecosystem and its participation in the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS), alongside initiatives including fintech passporting with the National Bank of Rwanda to enable cross-border licensing, an Africa Next-Generation Digital Public Infrastructure Initiative testing multilateral interoperability frameworks, settlement models and potential cross-border digital currency arrangements, and the Virtual Asset Service Providers Act passed by parliament to support new digital payment channels with risk oversight. Priorities flagged for the “way forward” included harmonising standards for KYC/AML, consumer protection, data sharing and dispute resolution, expanding cross-border mobile money and instant payment pilots, and strengthening cybersecurity and operational resilience.
Bank of Ghana 2026-02-05
Bank of Ghana sets out cross-border payments agenda highlighting PAPSS participation and fintech passporting with Rwanda
At the African Prosperity Dialogue 2026, the Bank of Ghana stressed the importance of cross-border payments for the African Continental Free Trade Area, advocating for trade settlements in African currencies. Challenges include high transaction costs and reliance on foreign correspondent banks. Ghana's domestic interoperable payments ecosystem and participation in the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System were showcased. Priorities include harmonizing KYC/AML standards, expanding mobile money pilots, and enhancing cybersecurity.