Monday July 27, 2026
Mogadishu (AX) — Somalia is moving to bring banks, mobile money services and regional payment networks onto one interoperable platform as the Central Bank prepares to expand the Somalia Instant Payment System (SIPS).
Central Bank Governor Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi said this week that the initiative is central to modernizing Somalia’s financial infrastructure and accelerating the country’s digital economy.
“For years, Somalia’s payment systems operated in isolation, with banks and mobile money providers confined to closed networks that could not exchange value, driving up costs and excluding many people from the formal financial system,” Abdullahi said.
The country’s payments sector has long been divided among closed-loop systems, preventing customers from transferring money seamlessly between banks and mobile money operators.
The Central Bank took an initial step toward integration in 2021, linking commercial banks through the National Payment System for large-value transfers and introducing real-time gross settlement and automated clearing for interbank transactions.
Officials said that platform, however, did not fully meet the demand for round-the-clock infrastructure designed to handle routine retail payments.
Launched in January 2025, the Somalia Instant Payment System (SIPS) is based on ISO 20022 standards.
It allows participating financial institutions to process instant, interoperable payments.
Once fully integrated, SIPS is expected to unite 14 commercial banks with eight mobile money and e-wallet providers on a single network.
The platform accommodates person-to-person transfers, merchant transactions, payments to government and government disbursements to citizens.
Services covering business-to-person, business-to-government and business-to-business transactions are also under development.
Officials said connecting SIPS with SOMQR, Somalia’s standardized QR code, will simplify digital transactions for merchants, including informal businesses that account for much of the country’s everyday commercial activity.
The Somalia Payment Switch, the operator of SIPS, was created through a partnership between the Central Bank and 13 commercial banks.
Abdullahi said integrating mobile money operators is now the leading priority because most Somalis rely on them for daily financial transactions.
“Once they are connected, the system’s true scale will come into view, bringing every Somali with a mobile wallet into one interoperable network and making SIPS a powerful driver of financial inclusion,” he said.
Abdullahi said Somalia is also seeking to connect its payment infrastructure with systems operating across the region and the continent.
“As the newest member of the East African Community, we plan to play a role in developing modern regional payment infrastructure,” he said. “We are also working to link SIPS with the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System before the end of 2026.”
He described payment efficiency as an economic, social and strategic imperative for Somalia, where remittances continue to provide a significant share of household income.
Finance Minister Bihi Egeh praised Central Bank Governor Abdirahman M. Abdullahi for providing steady leadership as Somalia advances financial reforms and develops a modern, interoperable financial system.
“Creating the Somalia Instant Payment System is a strategic investment in our nation’s financial architecture, improving efficiency, reinforcing transparency, expanding financial inclusion and supporting a more integrated and competitive economy,” Egeh wrote on X.
He said reforms spanning the financial sector, economic governance, business environment and investment climate are establishing the institutional groundwork for sustainable growth, resilience and shared prosperity.
Egeh stressed that continued reform offers the most reliable route to unlocking Somalia’s economic potential.
