PAPSS: What is it good for? Probably plenty

The Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS) is a financial market infrastructure led by Afreximbank and supported by the AfCFTA Secretariat to enable instant cross-border payments across Africa using local currencies. It aims to reduce reliance on foreign currencies, lower transaction costs, and increase financial inclusion, particularly for small and medium-sized enterprises. While it has gained support from 13 African central banks and over 115 commercial banks as of May 2024, its widespread adoption is hindered by low awareness, fragmented regulatory frameworks, and inadequate digital infrastructure.

• PAPSS is designed to facilitate intra-African trade by allowing payments in local currencies, which reduces the need for central and commercial banks to hold reserves of foreign currencies like US dollars and Euros.
• The system's adoption is limited by a significant lack of awareness; a 2023 survey found that 39% of business leaders were unaware of PAPSS.
• As of May 2024, the system has seen a level of institutional uptake with 13 African central banks signed on, more than 115 commercial banks connected, and 10 payment switches integrated.
• PAPSS has expanded its reach beyond Africa, establishing a memorandum of understanding with the Arab Monetary Fund's Banu payment system and gaining adoption by all 11 central banks from the Caribbean Community.
• The system faces several structural and technical hurdles, including divergent national financial regulations, data privacy laws, and a disparity in technological infrastructure and internet connectivity across the continent.
• The pilot phase of PAPSS was conducted in the West African Monetary Zone (WAMZ), comprising Nigeria, the Gambia, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ghana, and Guinea, though some stakeholders questioned the feasibility of the timeline due to a perceived premature launch.

APA

South African Institute of International Affairs (2024). PAPSS: What is it good for? Probably plenty. https://saiia.org.za/research/papss-what-is-it-good-for-probably-plenty/

Chicago

South African Institute of International Affairs. PAPSS: What is it good for? Probably plenty. 2024. https://saiia.org.za/research/papss-what-is-it-good-for-probably-plenty/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=South African Institute of International Affairs |title=PAPSS: What is it good for? Probably plenty |date=5 November 2024 |url=https://saiia.org.za/research/papss-what-is-it-good-for-probably-plenty/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{southafricaninstituteofinternationalaffairs2024papss, author = {{South African Institute of International Affairs}}, title = {{PAPSS: What is it good for? Probably plenty}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, year = {2024}, month = nov, url = {https://saiia.org.za/research/papss-what-is-it-good-for-probably-plenty/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }