Bank of Papua New Guinea (BPNG)

The contract signing is the first step toward implementing the Retail Electronic Payments System (REPS), an initiative launched by BPNG in late 2015 as the next phase in the development of the National Payment System (NPS) and its drive for Financial Inclusion in PNG.

REPS follows on from the successful implementation of the KATS inter-bank electronic payment system which has been fully operational since February 2015.

In its Quarterly Economic Bulletin for June 2017, the Central Bank says over the four consecutive quarters to June 2017, annual headline inflation trended downward.

Despite total inflation increasing for the June Quarter at 1.2 percent, compared to a 1.1 percent increases in the March Quarter, the Bank states that annual headline inflation continues on a downward trend.

The Bank further said this trend continued to September 2017 with annual inflation at 5.1 percent.

BPNG governor Bakani said the central bank aims to roll out financial inclusive programs around the country to reduce the large percentage of unbanked population.

“With the help of these programs, we will reduce the figure from 80 to below 50 percent in the near future because our financial inclusion programs are implemented in the country through banks and financial institutions,” Bakani said during the opening of a two-day financial exposition in Mt Hagen last Friday.