Digital Payments & Fintech · Maldives
Fintech & digital payments rules in Maldives (2026)
Maldives shaded by its digital payments & fintech status
The Maldives operates a dedicated, in-force payments licensing regime under the National Payment System Act 2021, which requires all payment service providers — including e-money issuers and remittance providers — to be licensed by the central bank (MMA). Detailed licensing and operational rules are set out in the 2022 Regulation on Payment Services, and the MMA has already issued PSP licences and launched a national instant-payment rail ('Favara') in 2023. Open banking is contemplated by the Act but its dedicated regulations are still in development (phase two), and there is no specific BNPL framework.
Key points
The National Payment System Act (Law No. 8/2021) was ratified in May 2021. It confers on the MMA all powers to oversee and regulate the national payment system and requires payment service providers to be licensed, with limited exemptions for in-house/closed-loop systems.
The Regulation on Payment Services was gazetted on 13 March 2022, detailing the framework for licensing and operating payment services. Licences are issued only to companies registered under the Companies Act, established to provide payment/financial services, and operating from a business office in the Maldives; a security deposit must be lodged with the MMA.
The MMA (central bank) is the sole regulator. By March 2022 it had issued PSP licences to four companies, and the non-bank financial sector now includes around eight licensed PSPs covering e-money issuance and remittance. Licensed e-money providers include Fahipay Pvt Ltd and Payer Pvt Ltd.
E-money issuance is a licensable activity under the regime. The 2022 Regulation provides narrow exemptions for closed-loop e-money (usable only on the issuer's platform/limited networks and not redeemable), meaning open-loop e-money issuers require an MMA licence.
The MMA launched its Maldives Instant Payment System ('Favara') on 26 August 2023 under the Maldives Payment System Development project. It provides a unified payment gateway ensuring interoperability across banks and non-banks, supports the Rufiyaa, and uses ISO 20022 messaging; five banks were onboarded by December 2023.
The Act lays the legal basis for open banking and the instant-payment gateway is designed to support account access and payment initiation, but dedicated open-banking regulations are planned for a later phase and are not yet in force. No specific buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) framework was identified.
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