Access Bank Champions Africa’s Payment Integration at PAPSS COWRY 2025 Forum

Access Bank Champions Africa’s Payment Integration at PAPSS COWRY 2025 Forum

Access Bank has reaffirmed its leadership in advancing seamless cross-border payments across Africa at the maiden Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS) COWRY 2025 Participants Forum, held in Lagos on December 2 and 3, 2025.

The high-level forum brought together policymakers, regulators, financial institutions and payment system experts from across the continent to deliberate on the theme: “Building an interoperable and sovereign African payment ecosystem for trade and economic growth.”

Discussions at the event focused on the need for a resilient, interoperable and Africa-owned payment infrastructure capable of empowering businesses, supporting small and medium-scale enterprises (SMEs) and accelerating intra-African trade under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

PAPSS, which enables instant, secure and efficient cross-border transactions in local African currencies, was highlighted as a critical tool for reducing reliance on third-party currencies, improving settlement efficiency and deepening regional economic integration.

Speaking at the forum, Access Bank executives underscored the bank’s role in driving this transformation through its AccessAfrica initiative. The platform facilitates fast, secure and affordable payments across more than 20 African corridors, positioning the bank at the forefront of continental financial integration.

Access Bank representatives, including Naco Bolote, Head of International Remittance and Payments for African Subsidiaries, and Aminat Olatunji, Unit Head of Remittances, actively contributed to discussions on the evolving settlement landscape and the future of cross-border payments in Africa.

Bolote said the progress recorded with PAPSS reinforces Access Bank’s commitment to real-time settlement and financial integration across the continent.

“The progress made with PAPSS reinforces Access Bank’s commitment to real-time settlement and financial integration across Africa. We remain dedicated to collaboration and innovation, ensuring Africans can move money quickly, reliably and at scale,” he said.

He noted that PAPSS enables instant local-currency settlement, significantly reducing foreign exchange dependence and transaction turnaround time. According to him, when combined with AccessAfrica, the system delivers faster, more predictable and cost-efficient transfers across over 20 African countries. He added that PAPSS is currently live in eight Access Bank markets, with further rollouts planned for 2026.

Access Bank also commended PAPSS, Afreximbank and the AfCFTA Secretariat for their leadership in building the infrastructure required for a more connected, sovereign and prosperous African economy.

About Access Bank

Access Bank Plc, a wholly owned subsidiary of Access Holdings Plc, is a leading full-service commercial bank with operations spanning three continents, 24 countries and a customer base of over 60 million. The bank operates more than 700 branches and service outlets and employs over 28,000 people across Africa, Asia and Europe, with representative offices in China, Lebanon, India and the United Arab Emirates.

The bank combines a strong retail and digital banking franchise with deep corporate and investment banking expertise, robust risk management and capital management capabilities. It operates across three core business segments — Corporate and Investment Banking, Commercial Banking and Retail Banking.

Over the past 23 years, Access Bank has recorded one of Africa’s most successful banking growth trajectories, emerging as one of the continent’s largest retail banks. As part of its growth strategy, the bank remains committed to mainstreaming sustainable business practices, delivering profitable growth that is environmentally responsible and socially impactful, while enabling customers to achieve their financial goals.