Bank of Uganda to regulate all digital payment systems from now

Bank of Uganda has been granted more powers by parliament to regulate all financial services after the National Payment Systems Bill, 2019 was passed into law, according to a news report by Capital FM.

According to the parliamentary Committee on Finance, Planning and Economic Development chaired by Rubanda East MP, Musasizi Henry, the previous absence of a national payment systems law has led to uncertainty, where service providers who are not financial institutions engage in electronic and digital financial payments and as such, there has been inadequate protection of money across all digital platforms.

The amendments grant Bank of Uganda more powers of regulation and not Uganda Communications Commission as has been.

The passing of the bill ensures that the legal framework for the financial sector does include non-financial institutions like MTN, Airtel, Uganda Telecom, PayWay, SafeBoda, and Uber that provide payment systems. The move, parliament said would address the regulatory gaps that have affected users of these payment systems for some time.

Among other concerns of the bill was to provide for the safety and efficiency of payment systems; to prescribe the rules governing the oversight and protection of payment systems; to provide for financial collateral arrangements; to regulate payment services providers; to regulate the issuance of electronic money; to provide for the oversight of payment instruments and for other related matters.