Boom!!! PAPSS is live and now available in Ghana, Nigeria, Gambia, Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone

A brain brainchild of Afreximbank and proudly supported by the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat, PAPSS is a Pan-African Payment & Settlement infrastructure that enables instant payments across African borders in local currency!

There are over 42 currencies in Africa, the new PAPSS approach allows a customer in one African country to pay in their own currency, while a seller in another country receives payment in their own currency.

With PAPSS, Africans will no longer need to convert local currencies into hard currencies which then entailed the funds leaving Africa to be converted before being sent back again to the beneficiary bank – adding days to the transaction time

More than that, horrible experiences like, " I paid an extra $165 ( $30 as transfer fee, $35 as SWIFT charges and another $100 bank charges ) on top of a $10,000 bank transfer to the seller on orders within Africa is over.?

According to Benedict Oramah, President of the African Export-Import Bank, (Afreximbank), in a recent interview with Africa Renewal, ‘’a cumbersome and time-consuming process costs us [Africans] about $5 billion in [money transfer] charges each year.” Worst still, is the fact that included in this whopping sum are would-be -profits accruable to African Businesses, SMEs & Entrepreneurs, but are filtering away through Bank Charges, Exchange Rates & Transfer Fees amongst others.

How PAPSS works

Sending money using the PAPSS is a five-step process:?

1.) The first step is when an individual issues a payment instruction to their local bank or payment service provider.?

2.) Second, the bank or the payment service provider sends the instructions to PAPSS.?

3.) Third, PAPSS validates the payment instruction.??

4.) Fourth, upon successful validation, PAPSS will forward the instruction to the beneficiary’s bank or payment service provider.?

5.) Lastly, the bank or payment service provide pays the transferred funds, in local currency, to the beneficiary.?

Officially launched on 13 January in Accra, Ghana, by Afreximbank and AfCFTA Secretariat, the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS), aground-breaking platform will save Africa more than US$5 billion annually in payment transaction costs, while it plays an increasingly significant role in accelerating the continent’s transactions underpinning the operationalization of the AfCFTA.

Why PAPSS matters

MSMEs in Nigeria and other emerging economies face high import and export expenses, as well as unknown transaction delays due to limited correspondent bank relationships, foreign currency availability, and cross-border transaction rail capacity.

With PAPSS, Africa has demonstrated to the developing world and emerging economies how these international transaction issues can be addressed with a commercially viable modern solution.

Participants no longer need to convert local currencies into exchanged currencies thanks to the PAPSS platform’s quick payouts. Overnight settlements allow central banks to reduce their international currency holdings.

The technology checks for compliance, legality, and punishments in real-time. PAPSS has the potential to reduce transaction time to seconds, removing a major impediment to intra-African e-commerce, services, and goods trade growth.

Join the conversation here to register and learn more:?https://chat.whatsapp.com/GzBgknBdf36BH5xwWSanuD

About Pan African Business Labs (PABL)

At Pan African Business Labs (PABL), we are on a mission to building the largest consortium of seasoned AfCFTA Professionals, Intra - African Trade Advisors, AfCFTA Advocacy & Engagement Leads, Implementation Catalyst, Impact Coordinators, Training and Technical Support Service Providers in Sub - Saharan Africa who will be committed to working with stakeholders in the implementation ecosystem and value chain (including Government Leaders, Implementation Authorities & Actors, Development Partners, Cooperatives, Associations, Business Forums, NGOs, CSOs, BMOs, Media, SMEs and Entrepreneurs) to accelerate effort in maximizing the opportunities, gains & impact of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA - a single market that connects 1.4 Billion African Consumers with a combined GDP of over 3.4 Trillion USD on one hand and on the other hand, helping Women, Youths - in -Trade & SMEs to adapt at scale, unleash vistas of opportunities & new market frontiers in the Free Trade Area (FTA).

Email enquiries: [email protected]