GhIPSS begins ISO 20022 migration to align payments with global standards

Ghana Interbank Payment and Settlement Systems Ltd. (GhIPSS) has begun migrating Ghana’s national payment infrastructure to the ISO 20022 global messaging standard, a move aimed at improving cross-border interoperability, accelerating settlement times and aligning the country’s financial system with international payment networks.

The migration, announced by GhIPSS Chief Executive Clara Arthur at the 3i Africa Summit in Accra, forms part of Ghana’s broader strategy to deepen digital finance integration and strengthen the infrastructure supporting cross-border trade and financial services.

Arthur described the transition as a “strategic repositioning for the future”, saying the adoption of ISO 20022 will allow Ghana’s payment systems to “speak the same language as the world’s leading financial markets”.

The standard is expected to support richer transaction data, improve payment transparency and facilitate smoother integration with international financial institutions and payment systems.

The migration also comes as regulators and payment operators globally shift toward ISO 20022 to modernise financial messaging frameworks.

The initiative builds on Ghana’s existing interoperable payments infrastructure developed by GhIPSS in collaboration with the Bank of Ghana, banks, mobile money operators and fintech firms.

Platforms including gh-link, Ghana’s Instant Payment system, Mobile Money Interoperability, Direct Credit and Debit systems and cheque clearing infrastructure currently support digital transactions across financial institutions.

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Arthur said the country’s payments ecosystem has evolved from basic interoperability toward building infrastructure capable of supporting broader digital finance applications and regional integration.

“Through shared infrastructure, we reduce costs, eliminate duplication and create scale, enabling institutions to grow sustainably and serve customers more effectively,” she said.

The migration comes as African policymakers seek to reduce fragmentation in payment systems and lower the cost of intra-African trade transactions, many of which are still routed through offshore correspondent banking systems and settled in foreign currencies.

Vice President Prof. Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang said Africa’s digital integration agenda now depends heavily on interoperable payment systems, digital identity frameworks and regulatory coordination.

“In many cases, intra-African transactions are still routed through financial systems outside the continent and denominated in third currencies,” she said at the summit. According to her, this increases transaction costs and delays while undermining efforts to create a more integrated African market under the African Continental Free Trade Area.

The Vice President also announced that Ghana will work with Rwanda, Zambia and other countries to pilot a continental digital trade corridor focused on mobile money interoperability, cross-border digital identity verification and harmonised electronic invoicing.

Bank of Ghana Governor Dr. Johnson Pandit Asiama said the next phase of Africa’s digital finance development will extend beyond payments into digital credit, embedded finance, supply-chain finance and cross-border financial services.

“The challenge is no longer building systems. It is connecting them,” Dr. Asiama said, pointing to fragmentation, uneven regulatory alignment and transaction costs as key barriers to scaling digital finance across the continent.

The central bank is simultaneously advancing regulatory reforms covering virtual assets, open banking, digital credit and cross-border fintech operations as part of efforts to create a more structured digital finance ecosystem.

GhIPSS also said it is strengthening partnerships with regional and international card schemes while exploring collaboration with virtual asset service providers following the passage of Ghana’s Virtual Asset Service Providers Act.

The broader policy direction signals increasing emphasis on payment interoperability and shared infrastructure as African economies attempt to improve financial inclusion, support cross-border commerce and position local financial systems for deeper participation in the global digital economy.