Sending money between banks and mobile money wallets in Rwanda has become simpler, cheaper and more seamless following the full rollout of eKash, the country's national instant payment system.
From July 14, customers can transact between bank accounts and mobile wallets while paying no more than Rwf20 per transfer, after the National Bank of Rwanda (BNR) completed the migration of all domestic interoperable retail payments onto the eKash platform.
ALSO READ: Rwanda rolls out system ending fragmented digital payments
This means Rwanda now has a single national payment infrastructure linking banks, mobile money providers, SACCOs, and microfinance institutions, eliminating the fragmented payment arrangements that previously required financial institutions to establish separate connections with each other.
Instead of maintaining multiple bilateral integrations, every participating institution now connects once to eKash, enabling customers to send money across institutions regardless of where they hold their accounts.
For customers, the experience remains unchanged. Transactions continue through existing banking applications, mobile money platforms, internet banking services and USSD channels without opening a separate eKash account or downloading another application.
Whether transferring money from a bank account to a mobile wallet, between two banks, from a mobile wallet to a bank account or between different mobile money providers, customers now transact through one harmonised national payment infrastructure.
BNR says the move is expected to improve affordability, accessibility and efficiency while deepening financial inclusion.
ALSO READ: How Rwanda's digital payment system, eKash is driving financial inclusion
One connection instead of many
Before eKash, interoperability depended on individual agreements and technical integrations between financial institutions.
Each bank or electronic money provider had to establish and maintain separate connections with every other institution it wanted to exchange payments with, making the system more complex and costly to operate.
eKash replaces that model with a single national payment switch.
Officials at RSwitch, which operates eKash, say connecting institutions through one infrastructure significantly reduces technical complexity while allowing money to move seamlessly across the financial ecosystem.
"With eKash, institutions connect once to the national payment system, reducing technical complexity and improving the efficiency of digital transactions,” said Chirenje Clinton, the Senior Marketing and Communications Officer at RSwitch,
This, he added, means customers can enjoy digital payments that are easier, faster, more affordable and more accessible.
The transfer happens through the same channels customers already use, including mobile banking applications, internet banking platforms and USSD services.
Customers will not need to register for a separate eKash account, download a new application or change their existing bank or mobile money accounts.
ALSO READ: Rwanda's National Digital Payment System
Lower transaction fees
Alongside harmonising payments, the new payment system introduces a maximum Rwf20 fee for person-to-person transfers between different financial institutions.
The fee is paid by the sender, although banks and electronic money providers remain free to charge less—or waive the fee altogether—depending on their pricing policies.
Previously, customers faced hefty charges when transferring money between banks and mobile wallets. For example, a Bank of Kigali customer sending between Rwf5 million and Rwf10 million to a mobile wallet would incur a Rwf5,000 transaction fee.
On the other hand, merchant payments processed through eKash will not attract any eKash transaction charges for either customers or merchants.
"For merchant payments, customers will not pay an eKash transaction fee, and merchants will also receive payments without an eKash charge,” Chirenje noted.
The platform also raises the maximum interoperable transfer amount to Rwf10 million per transaction, although individual financial institutions may impose lower transaction or daily limits based on their internal risk management and customer protection policies.
Growing payment infrastructure
Launched in 2022, eKash initially focused on enabling interoperability between mobile money providers before gradually expanding to banks, SACCOs and microfinance institutions.
The platform now connects 22 financial institutions, including commercial banks, MTN Mobile Money Rwanda, Airtel Money Rwanda, SACCOs and microfinance institutions.
RSwitch says completing domestic interoperability marks an important milestone, but further expansion is already underway.
The next phase will focus on integrating additional government payment services into eKash while also enabling cross-border instant payments.