13 Mar 2024

On March 12, 2024, the banks of the Republic of Moldova launched instant payment services. This advancement enables the rapid transfer of funds between the accounts of individuals at any time, using only the recipient's mobile number.

Global trends in financial technology emphasize the importance of embracing progress and continually modernizing the payment infrastructure. In alignment with the Development Concept for the payment industry in the Republic of Moldova, the National Bank of Moldova (NBM) has endorsed a project aimed at modernizing the NBM Automated Interbank Payment System (AIPS) and introducing an instant payment system.

CS and OTP Bank

The collaboration between CS company and OTP Bank began in 2020. By 2022, the partnership saw the launch of the core banking system B2 (CBS B2), which was integrated into the B2ng web interface, enhancing operational efficiency (further details are available via the provided link). In 2023, thanks to a custom interface developed by CS company, OTP Bank achieved seamless integration with the new version of the NBM CRM. This strategic move paved the way for the next phase in implementing the NBM Concept: the introduction of instant payments.

Instant payments now enable every citizen of the Republic of Moldova to conduct transfers and payments in the national currency, lei, across the country by simply using a phone number.

Instant payments key features:

• Available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
• Payment processing in under 5 seconds.
• Can be made to the account of any bank's user.
• Secure exchange of payment details via mobile phone number.

The Integration of Instant Payments at OTP Bank: Implementation Features 

The first step in the implementation of the instant payments project at OTP Bank was to transition the Core Banking System B2 (CBS B2) to operate on a 24/7 basis. The "24/7" functionality ensures that the system is always available to every user, including for reading and recording by external systems and interfaces.

The next stage was the integration of the CBS B2 with the national banking system Central Alias Service (CAS). CAS is a system that stores information about counterparties, their aliases, and accounts. In it, each alias is linked to a client's account and their bank account.

An alias is an easily memorable identifier, such as a mobile phone number or email address. This allows clients to register their accounts in a publicly accessible database and then use the alias instead of the full set of banking details to identify the account.

CAS operates in a centralized mode. It stores all necessary information about the account (IBAN, client's full name) at the National Bank of Moldova.

The final stage was the integration of the CBS B2 with the NBM in terms of receiving and sending instant payments, as well as handling requests for payment. This allows not only for the instant payment transfers but also for requesting payments to be made.

The Mechanics of Instant Payments

Nataliia Semenchenko, CS analyst:

«Thanks to the implementation of instant payments, the process of sending and receiving funds within the Republic of Moldova will take mere seconds, regardless of the time of sending, the sender's bank, and the receiver's bank. Currently, instant payments are only available between individuals, with plans to extend these services to legal entities considering future plans of the NBM.