Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) has commenced pilot testing of the Instant Payment System (IPS). MMA commenced pilot testing with the Bank of Maldives (BML), Maldives Islamic Bank (MIB), and State Bank of India.
MMA signed the Participation Agreement to launch the IPS earlier this month. MMA signed the agreement with BML, MIB, and State Bank of India. During the signing ceremony, Governor of MMA Ali Hashim said that IPS is currently in the pilot testing phase and that MMA plans to officially launch IPS next month, adding that more banks will join the system in the near future.
IPS is a financial infrastructure that enables immediate transfer of funds between participating banks or financial institutions. It allows for real-time electronic transactions, where the sender's payment is instantly credited to the recipient's account, typically within seconds. Instant payment systems offer a convenient and efficient way to transfer money, providing faster and more convenient alternatives to traditional payment methods such as checks or bank transfers that may take several hours or even days to process.
MMA stated that after the initial trial, it will make the final preparations for the banks to introduce the service to customers. The introduction of IPS aims to allow customers to quickly make financial transactions through a secure system as well as to develop the payment system in the Maldives and pave the way for the introduction of more modern and digital payment services.
IPS is designed to provide equal access to payment services for those who are unfamiliar with the financial system and those who do not have a bank account. MMA stated that the first phase will focus on domestic financial transactions and the second phase will connect to other countries' national payment systems to facilitate instant currency transactions abroad.