What does it take to get a payment switching licence in Zambia?
To hold a payment switching licence in Zambia, you need the Payment System Operator licence from Bank of Zambia. Published timeline: Determination within 90 days; designation certificate valid until revoked/surrendered, provided the annual fee is paid; 30-day window for extra info; name clearance valid 6 months. Full requirements — minimum capital, local presence, timeline, local ownership, fees and ongoing obligations — are set out below in each instrument's own words, with source and date; amounts are in the statute's own currency.
“Payment switching” here is the normalized activity: Own or operate payment switching, routing, clearing or interoperability infrastructure between payment service providers, issuers, acquirers and schemes.
Activity id (as used by the Afriset MCP): fintech:SWITCHING
Payment System Operator
Bank of Zambia| Requirement | As published | Source | Source date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum capital | Not officially published: No published number. Delegated to BoZ (s.87); no ZMW minimum in the Act or the designation requirements. | National Payment System Act, 2026 (Act No. 5 of 2026) — enabling Act, categories + delegation | 2026-04-08 |
| Local presence / incorporation | Body corporate; PACRA; ZICA auditor; local bankers; Zambian head office/branches; foreign-company route (s.14(2)). Verbatim“A person that is not a corporate shall not be issued with a licence under this Act. … may be granted to a foreign company registered in the Republic if the … foreign company is a payment service provider in the country where the … principal place of business is located…” | National Payment System Act, 2026 (Act No. 5 of 2026) — enabling Act, categories + delegation | 2026-04-08 |
| Timeline | Determination within 90 days; designation certificate valid until revoked/surrendered, provided the annual fee is paid; 30-day window for extra info; name clearance valid 6 months. Verbatim“Provided an annual designation fee is paid, a designation certificate shall remain valid until it is revoked or surrendered… … An approved name shall be valid for a period of six (6) months…” | BoZ, Requirements for Designating a Payment System, February 2025 | 2025-02 |
| Local ownership | No local-shareholding %. Governance: min 3 directors, majority non-executive, majority resident in Zambia; fit-and-proper significant shareholders; CEO/CFO/CCO/CITO required. Verbatim“(a) … minimum of three (3) board members … (b) The majority … non-executive … (c) Majority … resident in Zambia.” | BoZ, Requirements for Designating a Payment System, February 2025 | 2025-02 |
| Fees | Not officially published: Prescribed application fee + annual designation fee — no amounts published. | National Payment System Act, 2026 (Act No. 5 of 2026) — enabling Act, categories + delegation | 2026-04-08 |
| Ongoing obligations | Risk-management framework (cyber/operational/credit/liquidity/ML); Payment System Rules incl. failure-to-settle arrangements; BCM/DR plan (RTO/RPO); safeguard customer funds; AML/KYC per FIC Act; BoZ inspection/oversight; board reports going-concern/inability-to-settle risk to BoZ. Verbatim“Payment System Rules including failure to settle arrangements … It has taken adequate measures for the purpose of safeguarding customer funds.” | BoZ, Requirements for Designating a Payment System, February 2025 | 2025-02 |
Requirements as published in the cited instruments — not legal or compliance advice. Capital and fees are shown in the currency the statute itself uses. Where a value is located but not yet verified, we show that it exists but don't publish the figure. Verify directly with the regulator.
Who already holds this licence?
0 entities are on the Bank of Zambia register under the Payment System Operator category — view the register .
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