Rwanda and Tanzania are working to establish an instant cross-border payments system, according to a report published on July 13, 2026, by The Guardian Tanzania. The initiative, confirmed by officials from the National Bank of Rwanda (BNR) and the Bank of Tanzania (BoT), aims to facilitate faster and cheaper transactions between the two East African neighbours. The development comes as Rwanda announces the full interoperability of its national digital payment platform, eKash, and as a separate pan-African payment system expands its reach in Central Africa.

Rwanda’s central bank governor, John Rwangombwa, stated that the two countries are in discussions to link their payment systems, a move intended to boost trade and economic integration. "We are working with Tanzania to see how we can link our payment systems so that we can have instant cross-border payments between the two countries," Rwangombwa was quoted as saying. A senior official from the Bank of Tanzania also confirmed the ongoing talks, highlighting the shared goal of reducing transaction costs and times for individuals and businesses moving money across the border.

The bilateral effort aligns with a broader continental push to simplify intra-African payments, a longstanding challenge due to currency convertibility issues and fragmented financial infrastructure. It follows the recent linkage of the Bank of Central African States (BEAC) to the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS), a platform developed by the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank). That integration, announced earlier this month, connects the six nations of the Central African Economic and Monetary Community (CEMAC) to the instant settlement network, which is designed to enable transactions in local currencies across member states.

Rwanda’s domestic payments landscape has concurrently reached a significant milestone. The country’s central bank announced that its eKash system has achieved full interoperability, allowing seamless transactions between different mobile money wallets, bank accounts, and other payment service providers within Rwanda. The platform, which went live in 2025, is intended to be the backbone for the country’s digital payments, reducing reliance on cash and improving financial inclusion. Full interoperability means a user of one mobile network’s money service can now send funds directly to a user on a different network or to a bank account without intermediary steps.

Analysts observe that strengthening domestic payment systems, as Rwanda has done with eKash, is often a prerequisite for effective cross-border linkages. A robust and interoperable national infrastructure provides a more stable foundation for connecting to international networks. The proposed Rwanda-Tanzania corridor would represent a direct bilateral link, distinct from but potentially complementary to multilateral frameworks like PAPSS. Such bilateral agreements can sometimes move faster, serving as building blocks for wider regional integration, particularly within trade blocs like the East African Community (EAC).

The progress on these multiple fronts—bilateral talks, domestic interoperability, and regional system expansion—reflects the accelerating pace of digital financial integration in Africa. While the timeline for the launch of the Rwanda-Tanzania link remains unspecified, the confirmation of high-level discussions indicates a concrete step toward making cross-border transactions more efficient for citizens and traders in both nations.