Last Updated on Tuesday, 17 February 2026, 21:47 by Writer
Three local and foreign commercial banks are connecting to the full suite of the National Payments System (NPS) platform which has been provided by the United Kingdom (UK)-headquartered Aperta Payment Processing Solutions, officials said Monday.
A financial sector official said the system would allow ordinary people and businesses to engage in real-time financial transactions regardless of the banks with which they have their accounts.
President Irfaan Ali earlier on Tuesday told the opening of the 2026 Guyana Energy Conference that two commercial banks were poised to link up on the NPS to facilitate a full array of services.
“I am pleased to tell you that we have completed the process of building out a national payment platform and two local banks are ready to go completely on a digital platform. They have already been approved so that we can now have digital wallets, digital payment systems and digital transfer here in Guyana,” he said.
The foreign-owned banks that are operating here are Scotia Bank, India-headquartered Bank of Baroda and Republic Bank whose headquarters are located in the twin-island nation of Trinidad and Tobago. The locally-owned banks are Citizens Bank, Guyana Bank for Trade and Industry, and Demerara Bank.
Meanwhile, Dr Ali said other plans include establishing a group of digital experts to transfer the ideas into proposals after they which they would be provided managerial expertise “in creating viable and sustainable enterprises.”
The government has already announced plans to establish a development bank as a tool to unlock larger lending from the other banks.
He said the interest-free, collateral-free resources had been already negotiated with the commercial bank and his government would now work towards unlocking additional resources at low interest costs and low collateral requirements. “That brings a whole new generation into the umbrella of entrepreneurship and transferring their ideas into reality,” he said.
The President also restated plans to complete work on the junior stock exchange to build transparent companies and so ensure they are fully integrated into the financial system.
