Digital Payments & Fintech · Sri Lanka
Fintech & digital payments rules in Sri Lanka (2026)
Sri Lanka shaded by its digital payments & fintech status
Sri Lanka operates a mature, CBSL-administered licensing regime for digital payments and fintech under the PSS Act No. 28 of 2005, which prohibits any entity from operating a payment or money-services system without CBSL authorisation. The regime covers payment cards, mobile payment systems, e-money operators, and money/value transfer service providers through distinct licensing categories. A live national instant-payment infrastructure (CEFTS/JustPay), a national QR standard (LANKAQR), and an active fintech regulatory sandbox further underpin the framework.
Key points
The PSS Act No. 28 of 2005 is the foundational law, granting CBSL exclusive authority to authorise and supervise all payment, clearing and settlement systems and providers of money services in Sri Lanka. No entity may operate without CBSL authorisation.
CBSL issues distinct licences for: (1) payment card service providers (Regulations No. 1 of 2009), (2) mobile payment system operators (customer-account-based and mobile phone-based e-money), under Payment Cards and Mobile Payment Systems Regulations No. 1 of 2013, and (3) Money or Value Transfer Service Providers (Regulations No. 01 of 2025).
CEFTS (Common Electronic Fund Transfer Switch), introduced in 2015, provides 24/7 real-time interbank retail payments; the underlying RTGS was upgraded to ISO 20022 compliance in 2024. JustPay is the consumer-facing overlay service, with per-transaction limits and fees governed by CBSL Circular No. 1 of 2026.
LANKAQR, introduced in 2018 on EMV specifications, is the CBSL-mandated national interoperable QR code standard. It has been extended to accept Alipay+ and India's UPI. Circular No. 2 of 2026 updated its scope to cover local-currency payments and peer-to-peer fund transfers. LankaPay (Pvt) Ltd operates the national network.
CBSL operates a formal FinTech Regulatory Sandbox (framework published 2020, reviewed 2024–2025) allowing innovators to test products in a controlled environment with temporary regulatory relaxations, prior to seeking full CBSL authorisation. CBSL's 2024 Policy Agenda committed to revising the sandbox framework to accommodate more fintechs.
No standalone BNPL-specific legislation exists; BNPL products fall under the general CBSL payments oversight and consumer-finance regulation. Open banking has not been formally codified via dedicated open-banking rules; interoperability is achieved through CEFTS/LANKAQR mandates rather than a distinct API-access regime.
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