By Dhiladhila Magazine · January 2026

A new determination turns payment providers into licensed, supervised institutions.

Published in Government Gazette 8822 on 6 January 2026, the PSD-1 determination sets out licensing, governance, risk-management and reporting obligations for payment service providers in Namibia. It moves the sector from lightly watched to formally supervised.

From informal rails to licensed institutions

PSD-1 treats payment providers as regulated financial institutions, with the licences, governance standards, risk controls and reporting that implies. For a fintech, that is a step up in obligation – and in credibility. Supervision is the price of being trusted to hold and move other people’s money.

The rules also protect users and the system, reducing the chance that a lightly governed provider fails and takes customer funds or confidence with it.

Licensing is a burden on the provider and a shield for the user.

What providers must build

Compliance means real capability: fit-and-proper governance, documented risk management, and regular reporting to the central bank. Smaller or newer providers will feel the cost most, and some may consolidate or partner to meet it. The bar to operate has risen.

For established players and serious entrants, a clear rulebook is welcome, because it replaces uncertainty with a known standard and legitimises the whole sector.

The rules raise the cost of entry and the value of staying.

For a fintech, a bank or an investor, PSD-1 formalises Namibia’s payments industry into a licensed, supervised sector. The decision it forces on every provider is whether to build the governance, risk and reporting capacity the determination requires – the cost of operating legitimately in a payments market that is being professionalised.

Sources: Government Gazette 8822 – PSD-1 (LAC); Bank of Namibia