Kathmandu: International Financial Corporation (IFC) and Nepal Clearing House Ltd. (NCHL) have entered into an agreement to strengthen digital payments ecosystem and provide impetus to the digital payment players in Nepal. The agreement was signed by Mr. Babacar Sedikh Faye, Resident Representative of IFC Nepal and Mr. Neelesh Man Singh Pradhan, CEO of NCHL.
With this agreement, IFC will provide technical assistance to NCHL in various activities of implementing National Payment Switch (NPS) including its initial rollout. Such assistance will be in a form of advisory support for review of major operating rules, technical and security standards. IFC will also support NCHL for driving new digital initiatives, cross-border payment framework, creating industry sandbox and capacity building. The agreement between IFC and NCHL is a key milestone in digital payments ecosystem that is expected to add value through IFC’s expert advisory and international best practices to further strengthen digital initiatives in Nepal.
IFC is a member of World Bank Group, which is the largest global development institution focused to stimulate and help creating conducive flow of domestic and foreign private capital into productive investment in member countries. IFC’s Digital Financial Services Nepal Project provides advisory support to contribute towards a well-functioning digital financial system through targeted interventions. It has been providing technical assistance and advisory to some of the major stakeholders in Nepal in the digital payments space.
NCHL is a payment system operator in Nepal promoted by Nepal Rastra Bank and almost all banks & financial institutions with objective to implement and operate multiple national payment systems and infrastructures. It has been operating NCHL-ECC, NCHL-IPS, connectIPS, connectRTGS, National Payments Interface (NPI), CORPORATEPAY, RPS and NEPALPAY QR with participation of over 55 BFIs as direct members and over 70+ non-bank institutions as indirect/ technical members. It’s infrastructures are used by BFIs, PSPs, PSOs, Government, Semi-Government Entities, large fund managers, insurance companies, remittances, merchant banks, capital market entities, etc.