The National Bank of Rwanda (BNR) has announced the official launch of the Rwanda National Digital Payment System (RNDPS/eKash), a fast and interoperable payment platform that connects different financial institutions. The initiative is part of Rwanda’s strategy to promote faster digital payments through technology.
The new system enables customers to send and receive money, as well as make payments across licensed financial institutions, making payment services more accessible, secure, affordable, and available to everyone.
eKash is Rwanda’s national payment system designed to facilitate instant transactions across all financial institutions.
This means users can transfer money:
- From a bank account to a mobile money account,
- From a mobile money account to a bank account,
- From one bank account to another bank account,
- Or from one mobile money wallet to another, even if they are on different mobile networks—all through the eKash platform.
As part of its regulatory responsibilities, the National Bank of Rwanda oversees the operation of eKash and works closely with relevant stakeholders to ensure the platform remains secure, reliable, and fully compliant with the country’s laws and regulations.
BNR also continues to monitor the readiness of participating institutions, the availability of services, transaction performance, customer protection measures, and how customer complaints are handled.
Customers will continue using their existing bank accounts and mobile money wallets to send and receive funds.
However, the maximum amount that can be sent or received through eKash in a single transaction is RWF 10 million.
To make digital payments more affordable, BNR has set the maximum fee for person-to-person money transfers through eKash at RWF 20 per transaction.
For years, Rwandans have complained about the high cost of transferring money and making digital payments, despite the country’s ambition of becoming a cashless economy.
Financial institutions are free to charge lower fees—or even waive them entirely—depending on their own pricing policies.
According to RSwitch, the company operating the eKash platform, the system also allows customers to pay merchants using either a bank account or a mobile money account of their choice, regardless of which financial institution issued the merchant’s payment code.
eKash is accessible through the existing channels provided by banks and payment service providers, including USSD codes, mobile applications, and internet banking.
RSwitch emphasized that customers’ funds remain protected under Rwanda’s financial sector regulations.
The company also pledged to continue providing secure, reliable, and efficient services that enable every Rwandan to send, receive, and make payments seamlessly across all financial institutions in the country.
Rwanda is among the countries that have embraced digital technology across public and private services and aims to encourage more people to adopt cashless transactions instead of carrying physical cash.
