Namibia’s interbank system facilitates massive N$1.2 trillion in transactions

Bank of Namibia communications practitioner Josefina Oskar says the Namibia Interbank Settlement System (Niss) has facilitated over 97 000 transactions with a total value surpassing N$1.2 trillion between April 2024 and April 2025.

She says this following the bank’s successful completion this week of the Niss migration to the ISO 20022 global payment messaging standard.

“As a systematic financial market infrastructure is required to support financial stability, it is important that Niss is managed and operated in accordance with international standards and practices.”

“ISO 20022 is an internationally recognised standard for financial payment messaging currently being adopted worldwide by financial institutions. By adopting ISO 20022, Namibia joins the ranks of global economies in modernising payment systems,” she says.

Oskar adds that this milestone strengthens the country’s position as a competitive and progressive player in the global payments landscape.

She says it is also an important step in advancing the Bank of Namibia’s broader national payment system vision and strategy for 2021-2025, which includes several modernisation initiatives to enhance the country’s financial infrastructure.

“The bank remains committed to continuously enhancing Namibia’s payment system to align with international best practices while supporting an inclusive and stable financial system,” says Oskar.

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