The central banks of the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries (CPLP) highlighted a “great evolution” in payment systems, enabled by digital innovation, and want to strengthen legislation to avoid risks, an official source said.
The idea was defended by the Administrator responsible for the Payment System portfolio of the Banco de Cabo Verde (BCV), Antónia Lopes, spokesperson for the press at the IX Meeting on the Payment System of Central Banks of the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries (CPLP ), which took place recently in Cidade da Praia.
Cape Verde once again hosted this meeting, after the first one in 2003, on the island of São Vicente, and, according to the same official, since then there has been a “great evolution” in payment systems in Portuguese-speaking countries.
"Today, we continually need, given digital innovation, to help regulation and legislation where necessary, taking into account the risks, because digital innovation increases these problems, especially cyber ones.”, he pointed out, so that these meetings of technicians in this area serve to allow cooperation, sharing of ideas and knowledge.
"It will have to be adjusted for each country, but the basis for development and modernization is the same”, continued Lopes, highlighting the contribution that payment systems make to conduct monetary policy, financial inclusion and the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
"With an evolved payment system, there is better circulation of money, ease in terms of payments”, he stressed, in statements to Lusa.
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The meeting, which should have taken place in 2020, postponed because of Covid-19, had as its main theme “Digital Innovation as a Strategy for Transformation of the Payment System”.
Other topics were discussed, such as “Digital Innovation in the Retail Payments Market”, “Facilitating Initiatives for Payment Innovation and Financial Inclusion” and “The Future… Central Bank Digital Currency”.
The event had representatives from Cape Verde, Angola, Brazil, Portugal and Mozambique. Sao Tome and Principe, Timor-Leste, Equatorial Guinea and Guinea-Bissau were not present.
The Payment System Meetings of the Central Banks of the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries take place every two years, in alphabetical order of the countries, so the next one should take place in Guinea-Bissau, in 2024.
It should be noted that prior to the meeting, Banco de Cabo Verde held a “workshop” on the “Challenges of digital transformation in the payments sector”, to promote the broadening of the debate around innovation and digital transformation.
