Enabling Integration of Africa's Payment Sector: PAPSS Affirmed in Morocco Through Bank Al-Maghrib Pact
The Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS) is revolutionising Africa's financial landscape, facilitating secure and efficient cross-border payments across the continent. Launched in Accra, Ghana, on January 13, 2022, PAPSS is a joint initiative between African central banks and the African Union, designed to overcome currency inconvertibility and the fragmented financial landscape characterising Africa's 41 different currencies.
Currently operational in 17 African countries, including Morocco, which recently joined as the 17th member, PAPSS boasts a network of over 150 commercial banks and 14 payment switches across the continent. The system has developed and launched three main payment solutions: the PAPSS Instant Payment System (IPS), the PAPSS African Currency Marketplace (PACM), and the PAPSSCARD, the continent’s first Pan-African card scheme, launched in June 2025.
The PAPSS African Currency Marketplace (PACM) is a significant evolution, aimed at eliminating the "hard and costly currency bottleneck" by enabling sovereign currency exchanges and reducing dependence on external hard currencies. This marketplace is expected to cut an estimated $5 billion in fees and delays, which previously hindered intra-African trade competitiveness.
Morocco's central bank, Bank Al-Maghrib, officially joined PAPSS in July 2025, expanding the system's reach in North Africa and reinforcing its continental footprint. Morocco's entry into PAPSS signifies its commitment to Africa's financial integration and plays a key role in facilitating seamless cross-border payments involving Moroccan businesses, thereby boosting intra-African trade.
PAPSS addresses longstanding challenges such as currency convertibility, fragmented payments infrastructure, and reliance on non-African currencies, which have historically impeded trade and economic integration. By enabling real-time, secure payments across borders, PAPSS reduces transaction costs and risks, promoting greater fluidity in trade finance and commerce among African countries.
This system is a critical enabler for the effective implementation of the AfCFTA by facilitating smoother trade transactions, contributing to the AfCFTA’s goal of creating a single continental market. The platform’s integration with fintechs, switches, and financial institutions fosters a more inclusive financial ecosystem that can scale to cover the entire continent, reinforcing Pan-African economic unity and growth.
MikeOgbaluIII, chief executive officer of PAPSS, commented on Morocco's entry into PAPSS, stating it solidifies the continent's commitment to financial integration and intra-African trade under the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA). The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) and the African Union (AU) first announced PAPSS at the Twelfth Extraordinary Summit of the African Union held on 7 July, 2019, in Niamey, Niger Republic. In its 13th extraordinary session, held on 5 December, 2020, the assembly of the African Union directed Afreximbank and the AfCFTA secretariat to finalize work on PAPSS.
The PAPSS African Currency Marketplace, a significant evolution aimed at reducing dependency on external hard currencies, is expected to cut an estimated $5 billion in fees and delays that previously hindered intra-African trade competitiveness. Morocco's entry into PAPSS signifies its commitment to Africa's financial integration and plays a key role in facilitating seamless cross-border payments involving Moroccan businesses, thereby boosting intra-African trade, highlighting the importance of this system in business and finance scenarios.
