The Maldives Instant Payment System (IPS); Favara, marks its first anniversary with five million transactions. Favara was developed by the Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) and inaugurated on August 26, 2023. The system offers innovative, convenient, and affordable access to digital financial services, enabling users to make and receive payments from any bank account instantly.
Statistics released by the MMA indicates that Favara processed a total of five million transaction within a one-year period. It shows that the transactions are worth USD 972 million. The system is currently connected with to five banks including two local banks and three foreign banks. The banks are Bank of Maldives (BML) and Maldives Islamic Bank (MIB), Bank of Ceylon (BoC), State Bank of India (SBI) and Mauritius Commercial Bank (MCB).
Favara includes instant payment, request to pay, smart addressing, and account verification services. MMA stated that the payment system will allow citizens living on an island in the Maldives to open an account at any bank and instantly make transactions. The first phase of the instant payment system adoption prioritises enhancing internal financial transactions. The second phase will connect the system to the national payment systems of other countries to facilitate instant foreign currency transactions.