A new directive that will lay out the infrastructure for interoperability, a system that enables financial and non-financial institutions to work with or use the parts or equipment of another system, is in the making.

The National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE) has drafted a directive dubbed the Payment System Operators that aims at promoting financial inclusion. The regulatory bank also availed the draft directive for public consultation on April 16, 2020.

The bill, which has been in the making for the past year, considers licensed financial institutions as payment system operators by default. In contrast, any other non-financial institutions have to get authorisation from the NBE to operate payment systems.

Payment system operators include non-bank automated teller machines (ATM), payment switch operators other than the national switch, non-bank point of sale operators (PoS), non-bank mobile point of sale (m-PoS) operators and online payment platform processors. The authorised payment system operator has to be owned by Ethiopian nationals or a foreign national of Ethiopian origin, but no individual can hold a stake of more than 40pc.

Eth-Switch S.C., an entity owned by a consortium of all banks established with 80 million Br in capital seven years ago, is the national switch operator. Any financial institution other than the central bank cannot own a stake of more than 20pc, whereas individuals cannot own more than one share in the national switch operator at first entry or afterwards.

The minimum paid-up capital to function as a payment switch operator is 20 million Br, whereas a non-bank ATM operator has to cash in paid capital of 15 million Br and should have no less than 15 ATMs.

In the case of non-bank PoS and m-PoS, one has to present a minimum paid capital of one million Birr and at least 50 machines either owned outright or leased. Any payment system operator that juggles more than one system has to issue a paid capital of the sum of the individual systems.

An applicant has to fulfill comprehensive documentation with detailed data that demonstrates the operator’s knowledge of the subject, signed documents on the features and modalities of the system and other documents requested by the national bank.

Upon receiving the application, the central bank has to give a response within 60 days. The pilot period of the system shall remain for three months after a detailed pilot plan is given a green light by the central bank.

The payment system operators are also expected to write up rules on the governance, management and operation of the system with detailed information on the risk, objective and disclosed criteria for participation.