Technology
One national payment system
Somalia now has one national instant payment system, SIPS, with a single QR code standard, SOMQR, that went live in 2025 with 7 banks. It plans to link 14 banks and 8 mobile wallets, and Somalia joined the Pan-African payment system, PAPSS, in 2026.
The force
For years Somalia's mobile wallets and banks did not easily talk to each other. A national payment system changes that: money can move instantly between any bank or wallet, using one shared QR code.
Inside the country
- SIPS went live in January 2025 and was announced on 24 March 2025. It runs 24 hours a day and includes the national QR code standard SOMQR, PIN and one-time-password checks and fraud controls. Seven banks were live at launch (BPC).
- Who runs it. Somalia Payment Switch, set up by the Central Bank of Somalia and 13 banks (Eastleigh Voice).
- What comes next. The plan covers 14 commercial banks and 8 mobile money and e-wallet providers. Payments between people and to shops work now; payments from businesses to people, to government and to other businesses are being built (Eastleigh Voice).
- An earlier system set up in 2021 processed more than $1 billion in its first year (African Business).
Beyond the border
Somalia joined PAPSS, the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System, which lets African countries pay each other in their own currencies. The Somali Bankers Association announced it on 18 April 2026 (SBA); TechCabal dates the formal joining to March 2026 (TechCabal).
The wider money system
The Central Bank has licensed 15 commercial banks (Goobjoog) and approved the first 7 microfinance licences in November 2025 (Central Bank Annual Report 2025). An IFC project is building a credit information system and collateral registry with the Central Bank (IFC project record). In Somaliland, the central bank has started its own national payment programme.
Outside the country
India's UPI shows what one shared system can do: 21.7 billion phone payments between any banks in January 2026 alone (Government of India, PIB).
What is not known yet
How many mobile wallets were connected to SIPS in 2026 was not confirmed in our research.
What it means for young Somalis
One QR code that works with every bank and wallet means a small shop, a tutor or a freelancer can be paid by anyone, and one day by customers across Africa.
Sources
- BPC · bpcbt.com
- Eastleigh Voice · eastleighvoice.co.ke
- African Business · african.business
- SBA · sba.so
- TechCabal · techcabal.com
- Goobjoog · en.goobjoog.com
- Central Bank Annual Report 2025 · centralbank.gov.so
- IFC project record · ewsdata.rightsindevelopment.org
- Government of India, PIB · static.pib.gov.in
Gathered in our research record “Foundational tailwinds”. Wikipedia is used only as a backup.
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