GhIPSS report shows steady drive towards cashless agenda

The GhIPSS 2021 half year performance report has shown that the GhQR and other new electronic services have started making gains.

These electronic channels, including GhQR, ACH Direct Credit Near Real Time, GIP Debit pull, and Proxy Pay introduced by Ghana Interbank Payment and Settlement Systems (GhIPSS) cumulatively recorded 358,000 transactions in the first half of the year, representing 0.51 per cent of total transactions processed by GhIPSS.

In value terms, the transactions processed was GHC3.2 billion, representing 2 per cent of total value of transactions processed by GhIPSS.

The new services add on to existing electronic payment channels as the country seeks to deepen the cashless agenda.

The half year report captures the performance of all services provided by GhIPSS between January and June this year compared to the same period last year.

According to the performance report, GhIPSS processed a total of 70.2 million transactions representing a growth of 142 per cent compared to 2020 half year.

Total value processed was GHC 158 billion, representing a growth of 40 per cent.

The report also shows that the public continues to prefer real time payments to other electronic payment channels.

Total volume of real time transactions shot up by 254.6 per cent from 16.3 million to 57.8 million, while total value of transactions jumped by 402.8 per cent from GHC3.8 billion in 2020 to GHC19.5 billion in 2021.

The Chief Executive Officer of GhIPSS Archie Hesse explained in an interview that the positive performance of the services in the first half of this year can be attributed to the collective effort of all platform members to promote cashless transactions.

"This strategy is apt as customers are becoming more aware of the various cashless services and are beginning to incorporate them into their payment life styles,” he said.

Mr. Hesse said GhIPSS was also undertaking various customer engagements to create awareness and promote usage of the various electronic payment services.

He commended partner institutions comprising financial institutions, FinTechs and Telcos for the support and urged them to continue to position electronic payments as preferred payment lifestyle.

GhIPSS has been holding series of fairs at shopping malls to drive patronage for GhQR.

The institution is hopeful that such fairs and other awareness creation activities with the active involvement of partner institution will firmly place Ghana within the electronic payment society.