NIBSS Launches Open-Source Payment Stack For Instant Transfers, QR Codes, Phone Payments

Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) has deployed a new national payments platform built on open-source technology, giving the operator greater control over the development and expansion of critical digital payment infrastructure as transaction volumes and service demands evolve.

The National Payment Stack (NPS), designed and developed by NIBSS, uses technology supplied by United States-based Transactility, including its jPTSswitching platform, to support instant payments based on the ISO 20022 messaging standard.

The arrangement allows NIBSS to retain access to the platform’s source code and control its architecture, development roadmap, and locally developed intellectual property, potentially reducing dependence on proprietary technology vendors for future upgrades and modifications.

NIBSS Managing Director/Chief Executive, Premier Oiwoh, said the platform was designed to meet the scale and requirements of the Nigerian market.

In a statement, Oiwoh said, “The NPS was designed and built for the scale and demands of the Nigerian payments market. The jPOS ecosystem gives us the flexibility to continue developing the platform as the ecosystem evolves.”

Platform Targets Wider Payment Services

NPS supports account-to-account instant transfers, QR-code merchant payments, alias-based transactions using identifiers, such as phone numbers, and bulk payments.

Its architecture is designed to deliver the processing performance and availability required for national payment infrastructure while providing room for additional services as the market develops.

A key feature is its adoption of ISO 20022, an international financial messaging standard that enables more structured and detailed information to accompany payment transactions.

Its use provides a foundation for developing payment services around richer transaction data and greater interoperability, subject to implementation and integration requirements.

NIBSS built the platform using a modular architecture that combines its own engineering capabilities with selected open-source and enterprise technologies.

The company has used jPOS, an open-source framework for payment transaction processing, for years, particularly in systems based on the ISO 8583 messaging standard.

For NPS, it adopted jPTS and its ISO 20022 capabilities to develop a switching platform suited to the demands of Nigeria’s payments market.

The arrangement gives NIBSS access to the underlying technology while allowing it to customise and extend the system as operational needs and regulatory requirements change, rather than relying solely on a proprietary vendor’s product-development timetable.

The extent to which the new platform improves transaction costs, processing speeds, and service reliability will depend on its operational performance and adoption across the payments ecosystem.

Partnership Combines Local Engineering with Established Technology