Interswitch Secures Payment Service Holding Company Licence From CBN

Interswitch Group, one of Africa’s leading financial technology and integrated paymentssolution providers has been issued a Payment Service Holding Company (PSHC) licence by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

This follows an earlier announcement by the CBN regarding new licensing categories forparticipants in the Nigerian   payments system. By virtue of this development, which was formally communicated on Friday, January 13, 2023 by the apex bank, Interswitch essentiallybecomes one of the inaugural licencees by the CBN in this category.

According to the regulator, the PSHC regulation requires companies with existing or prospective operations across multiple license categories to set up a payments service holding company (PSHC). The activities of each of the PSHC subsidiaries operating within thoserespective licensing regimes are clearly delineated, for clearer accountability, effective risk management and the enablement of better regulatory oversight by the CBN.

The statement from Interswitch also outlines that Interswitch’s Group Holding Companyretains     ownership of the PSHC in Nigeria as well as its other subsidiaries outside of Africa.

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This recent development interestingly coincides with Interswitch’s 20th anniversary commemoration, which has seen the company cement its position as a pioneering and integral enabler that has actively supported the growth and development of fintech and payments progressively across Africa over the last 20 years. It also serves to reinforce Interswitch’sprogressive outlook as a frontier-driving company which keeps pushing boundaries to facilitatethe creation of new ecosystems that help businesses and individuals scale and thrive, in line with its purpose of inspiring Africa to greatness through innovation, value-creation andexcellence.

Commenting on this development, Interswitch’s Founder and Group CEO, Mitchell Elegbe remarked that ‘Twenty years ago, we placed a bet on latent potential we saw in the introduction of e-payment channels at the time, particularly ATMs for the delivery of cash just-in-time, and today, we are gratified  to see how far the financial technology and payment systems in Nigeria have grown. On the back of our receipt of this additional license, we remainstrongly committed to close partnership with the Central  Bank of Nigeria to facilitate the delivery of the Payments Vision (2025) and of course, the National Financial InclusionStrategy.

Elegbe further reiterates Interswitch’s resolute focus on its over-arching mission to continuechampioning technology solutions that connect and empower individuals, businesses, and communities across the continent.