No Result
View All Result
Thursday, July 10, 2025
23 °c
Tripoli
24 ° Sat
24 ° Sun
  • Advertising
  • Contact
LibyaHerald
  • Home
  • Libya
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Magazine
  • Advertising
  • Login
  • Register
SUBSCRIBE
  • Home
  • Libya
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Magazine
  • Advertising
  • Login
  • Register
No Result
View All Result
LibyaHerald
No Result
View All Result
Home Business

e-payments transactions top LD 1.1 bn in Q1 of 2021 – but cash is still king in Libya

bySami Zaptia
May 2, 2021
Reading Time: 3 mins read
A A

By Sami Zaptia.

Despite all efforts to introduce e-payments Libyans still prefer cash (Photo: Al-Madar and CBL introduce e-banking).

London, 2 May 2021:  

Total transactions made using e-payments in Libya were LD 1.180 billion in the first quarter of 2021, a top Central Bank of Libya source confirmed to Libya Herald today.

Asked to explain the low take up of e-payments and transactions by Libyans, Musbah Akkari. former chairman of Jumhuriya bank, head of CBL Reserves Department and currently member of the Libyan Dinar Exchange Rate Adjustment Committee, said it is partly cultural.

Cash is king

RELATED POSTS

Use of card and e-payments on the increase – helping to resolve Libya’s bank cash liquidity problem

Taxes can now be paid through e-payments: Finance Ministry

Libyans prefer the use of cash. They are more comfortable with cash partly through a legacy of mistrust in central government. Qaddafi had at one stage frozen all Libyan’s accounts and set them a reduced monthly withdrawal limit as part of his redistribution of wealth ideology.

Equally, since 2011 the Libyan cash crisis meant Libyans were unable to withdraw their money from their accounts. They often had to queue overnight just to withdraw a few hundred dinars.

The weakness of Libya’s e-payments as well as the country’s infrastructure has not helped. Electricity, the internet and the computer systems of the various branches and transactions centres have often been down, which interrupts e-services – reinforcing the utility of cash.

Libyans returning to cash?

At the end of April, Akkari, had warned that the use of e-payments has recently dropped reflecting the increased availability of cash at banks. It seems that by making more cash available the authorities were inadvertently discouraging the use of e-payments by making more cash available.

Akkari had noted that while the number of activated cards increased by 89,000 cards to 864,752 cards, but the value of purchases using cards decreased by 69 million dinars at the end of the first quarter of this year.

He hoped that Libyans will continue to use cards for their purchases, especially in light of the disappearance of most of the prohibitive cost premium that are charged by merchants. At the peak of Libya’s cash crisis this had peaked to around 20 percent for card payments. This naturally had an inflationary effect and discouraged the use of e-payments.

Akkari says today there are still a few e-payment companies that charge up to 16 percent e-payments premiums, but that most banks and their e-payments processing companies are not charging.

He conceded that the authorities and banks could do much more to enshrine and increase the take up of e-services.

Here are the e-payments stats for Q1 2021:

[restrict paid=”true”]

  • Local activated cards: 865,000.
  • Active points of sales (POS) machines: 15.800.
  • Active ATM’s: 144.
  • MobiCash card service subscribers: 100,000.
  • Purchases through POS: LD 700 million.
  • Purchases through the ‘‘Pay me’’ (Idfa’ly) e-service: LD 136 million.
  • Purchases through MobiCash card: LD 272 million.
  • Card purchases through Al-Bayana, Al-Madar and other e-payments companies LD 71 million.
  • Total purchases through e-payment services in Q1 of 2021 LD 1.180 billion.
  • Electronic messages received by the banking sector during Q1 2021: 20 million messages – most of these enquiring to find out if their state-sector salaries had been paid into their accounts by the state.

[/restrict]

The latest CBL statistical bulletin revealed that for Q4 2020 LD 40 billion of cash were outside the banking system. Most Libyans prefer to stay outside the tax and banking system!

 

LD 100 bn available locally to finance economy: Gumhouria Bank Chairman Musbah Akkari | (libyaherald.com)

End of Libya’s cash liquidity problem? | (libyaherald.com)

Moamalat POS processing centre to float 30 percent, 2,000 new machines ordered | (libyaherald.com)

National Payments Council discusses ways to develop e-payments services, subsidies for e-payments | (libyaherald.com)

Tripoli’s Finance Ministry discusses developing e-payments systems | (libyaherald.com)

Competition, more POS processing centres, cards and machines are key to POS market growth | (libyaherald.com)

Tadawul and Sharara sign strategic e-payments services agreement | (libyaherald.com)

Tadawul and Libya Insurance discuss strategic cooperation | (libyaherald.com)

e-payment workshop held in Tripoli in effort to reduce Libya’s need for cash | (libyaherald.com)

 

Tags: e-bankinge-paymentsfeaturedMasarat for IT and FinanceMoamalat Financial Services coSADAD mobile e-payment service

Related Posts

Aldabaiba opens First Phase of Tripoli’s Third Ring Road
Business

Aldabaiba opens First Phase of Tripoli’s Third Ring Road

July 9, 2025
NOC announces force majeure at Zawia port
Business

BP to reopen office in Libya, Shell discusses prospects for cooperation in oil field development‎

July 9, 2025
English High Court appoints Receiver to manage LIA litigations against Goldman Sachs and Societe Generale
Business

LIA organises investment forum in London with participation of international banks, asset managers and investment funds

July 9, 2025
Akakus Oil drills 15 wells since January – producing 25,000 bpd
Business

Akakus Oil Operations drills new Sharara field well with initial production of 1,750 bpd

July 9, 2025
CBL receives results from meetings with international banks
Business

A 247,000-bpd oil production increase would achieve US$ 6 billion annually to enhance ability to meet FX demand, maintain strength of LD and achieve economic balance: CBL ‎

July 2, 2025
Libya Herald exclusive: Responding to the prime minister’s call yesterday to the private sector and banks to do more, leading businessman Husni Bey responds
Business

Op-Ed: Reputational Damage Is Worse Than Losing Money

July 2, 2025
Next Post
Government delivers amended 2021 budget to parliament

Government delivers amended 2021 budget to parliament

Caffe Latte chain to open 10 new branches creating 100 new jobs

Caffe Latte chain to open 10 new branches creating 100 new jobs

ADVERTISEMENT

Top Stories

  • Benghazi port receives 398 containers of mixed goods, 25,000 tons of wheat, 28,500 tons of barley and 6,000 tons of cement

    All imports into Libya must be paid for through official bank transactions

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Op-Ed: Reputational Damage Is Worse Than Losing Money

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • A 247,000-bpd oil production increase would achieve US$ 6 billion annually to enhance ability to meet FX demand, maintain strength of LD and achieve economic balance: CBL ‎

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Libya’s economy showed recovery in 2024, remained resilient despite reliance on hydrocarbons and ongoing political and security instability: World Bank

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • CBL demands imports are conducted through official banking instruments and the elimination of the FX black market

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
ADVERTISEMENT
LibyaHerald

The Libya Herald first appeared on 17 February 2012 – the first anniversary of the Libyan Revolution. Since then, it has become a favourite go-to source on news about Libya, for many in Libya and around the world, regularly attracting millions of hits.

Recent News

Aldabaiba opens First Phase of Tripoli’s Third Ring Road

BP to reopen office in Libya, Shell discusses prospects for cooperation in oil field development‎

Sitemap

  • Why subscribe?
  • Terms & Conditions
  • FAQs
  • Copyright & Intellectual Property Rights
  • Subscribe now

Newsletters

    Be the first to know latest important news & events directly to your inbox.

    Sending ...

    By signing up, I agree to our TOS and Privacy Policy.

    © 2022 LibyaHerald - Powered by Sparx Solutions.

    Welcome Back!

    Login to your account below

    Forgotten Password? Sign Up

    Create New Account!

    Fill the forms below to register

    *By registering into our website, you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.
    All fields are required. Log In

    Retrieve your password

    Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

    Log In
    No Result
    View All Result
    • Login
    • Sign Up
    • Libya
    • Business
    • Advertising
    • About us
    • BusinessEye Magazine
    • Letters
    • Features
    • Why subscribe?
    • FAQs
    • Contact

    © 2022 LibyaHerald - Powered by Sparx Solutions.

    This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy and Cookie Policy.