The Ghana Interbank Payment and Settlement Systems Limited (GhIPSS), Ghana’s national payment systems infrastructure provider, has announced a pioneering partnership with Visa, a global leader in digital payments.

The partnership will have GhIPSS process domestic transactions denominated in Ghana cedi with Visa cards issued in Ghana.

This strategic collaboration is in line with the Bank of Ghana’s Guidelines for Domestic Processing of Payment Card Transactions with Payment Cards Issued in Ghana. Published in August 2021, the guidelines provide the mechanism for international card schemes to process their domestic transactions locally.

In partnering with GhIPSS, Visa will take advantage of GhIPSS' unique position as the national switch and a provider of interoperable platforms for digital financial services as well as its sixteen-year track record of processing payments domestically in Ghana.

GhIPSS will also benefit from integrating Visa's advanced payment processing technology into its platform to deliver Visa’s brand promise to domestic customers.

“Our partnership with Visa, a global brand that has extensive experience in digital payments, is an important step for our business. It is an outstanding opportunity for us to leverage Visa's expertise and assets to get better at our craft while delivering value to Visa customers in Ghana." said Archie Hesse, CEO of GhIPSS.

“We are confident that this partnership will be a success and will expand into other areas of mutual interest in the future,” he told Joy Business.

Andrew Uaboi, Vice President, and Cluster Head of Visa West Africa also added “This collaboration underlines our unwavering commitment to driving financial inclusion expansion across Ghana. We believe that by leveraging our global network and innovative payment solutions, we can empower individuals and businesses, fostering economic growth and prosperity for all.”

GhIPSS’ payment infrastructure is used by all banks in Ghana including the ARB Apex Bank and its affiliates, (The apex body for rural and community banks), savings and loans companies and third-party payment services providers (international card schemes, mobile money companies and Fintechs).