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Nigeria’s digital payment industry has reached a major milestone with the first live transaction completed on the National Payment Stack (NPS), a new digital infrastructure designed to unify and modernise the country’s payment systems.
This was disclosed in a statement by the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) on Sunday.
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The transaction, executed between PalmPay and Wema Bank at 11:56 a.m. on Friday, was completed in milliseconds with instant settlement.
NIBSS said the test confirmed the “robustness, scalability and transformative potential” of the platform, which will replace the existing NIBSS Instant Payment (NIP) system used by most financial institutions.
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The National Payment Stack is a homegrown framework built to make it easier for banks, fintechs and other payment firms to connect on a single platform.
It is part of efforts to improve transaction speed, reduce costs and expand financial inclusion by providing shared digital infrastructure for all licensed operators.
Built on the ISO 20022 global standard for financial messaging, the platform is expected to help Nigerian transactions connect more easily with international systems.
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It also forms part of the country’s wider digital public infrastructure agenda, which seeks to use open, interoperable systems to drive economic growth and transparency in financial services.
Speaking at the launch of the system earlier in June, NIBSS Managing Director and Chief Executive, Premier Oiwoh, said: “The National Payment Stack is a key milestone in our collective journey to simplify payments, foster inclusion, and position Nigeria at the forefront of digital transformation across Africa.”
NIBSS commended PalmPay and Wema Bank for pioneering the first transaction and urged other banks and payment service providers to complete their onboarding.
“The National Payment Stack is the new engine driving Nigeria’s next phase of payment innovation,” the statement said.
