PNG looks to expand financial inclusion with digital ID, bank collaboration

Papua New Guinea is taking steps toward digital transformation and financial inclusion with a new Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the Department of Information and Communication Technology (DICT) and MiBank.

The agreement announced at the Digital Transformation Summit in Port Moresby will integrate DICT’s SevisPass and SevisWallet platforms with MiBank’s services. SevisPass and SevisWallet, built by Tech5, are newly officially launched by the country.

SevisPass, a digital ID framework aligned with PNG’s emerging digital public infrastructure (DPI), allows citizens to self-enroll, verify their identity, and receive a tamper-proof digital ID. The app also offers instant digital Visa card issuance.

Together with SevisWallet, the system enables users to register their identity online and open a bank account directly from their mobile phones in under ten minutes, according to an official social media post.

“We have a diverse customer base across Papua New Guinea, many of whom are subsistence farmers in rural areas who travel long distances to access banking services,” said MiBank CEO Trudi Egi. Egi added that adding these customers can be challenging as many lack valid identification.

“This partnership enables access to financial services for underserved population through digital identity and wallet services and supports Papua New Guinea’s growing digital economy and financial inclusion agenda,” Egi added.

Under the partnership, Papua New Guineans who register with SevisPass and SevisWallet will be able to open accounts with MiBank. The bank has also introduced a new savings product, MiAkaont, designed as a digital wallet linked to government-issued IDs. The account is aimed at low-income and rural customers, students, and first-time account holders who often lack formal identification or access to traditional banking.

DICT Secretary Steven Maitahano said the collaboration demonstrates the potential of digital identity to transform access to services. “With a shared vision of reaching the most remote parts of our country to provide government services digitally and collaborating to provide financial services, this alliance strengthens our efforts to provide every Papua New Guinean with a bank account with ease and without concerns surrounding identification whilst still meeting KYC requirements for the bank,” Maitahano said.

Papua New Guinea has a decentralized DPI ecosystem built on Tech5’s trust platform T5-OmniTrust, as well as the T5-Airsnap and T5-OmniMatch ABIS. It also includes T5-Cryptograph decentralized digital ID technology, which allows for secure storage of a digital ID. Tech5 is a specialist in digital wallet projects. The firm collaborated with Visa to build Ethiopia’s FaydaPass wallet.

Article Topics

digital ID  |  digital identity  |  digital public infrastructure  |  digital wallets  |  financial inclusion  |  Papua New Guinea  |  SevisPass  |  SevisWallet