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Event File FINTECH

Papua New Guinea Pushes Fintech Expansion in 2026

1 reports · First detected 2026-07-26 · Last active 2026-07-26

Papua New Guinea is turning to fintech to widen access to financial services across a geographically fragmented market where cash remains dominant and many remote communities lack bank branches. The Bank of Papua New Guinea has operated a regulatory sandbox since 2021, while policymakers and lenders are promoting mobile payments, interoperable systems and digital identity. The opportunity is substantial, but weak connectivity, affordability constraints and limited digital literacy continue to slow adoption.

The country had 5.21 million mobile connections at the end of 2025, equal to 48.2% of the population, while 2.60 million people used the internet, for penetration of just 24.1%. Kina Bank launched an upgraded Pei Beta digital wallet in April 2026, adding real-time transfers and QR payments. BSP said the same month that more than 6,000 of its EFTPoS terminals were operating in Papua New Guinea. Neither institution disclosed an investment amount.

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1 original reports
THEFINTECHTIMES.COM 2026-07-26
Papua New Guinea, Fintech and Wider Digital in 2026

The Backstory

The history behind this event
Fiji Accelerates Fintech Push in 20262026-05-29 · 1 reports · similarity 0.83

Fiji’s population of more than 900,000 is spread across over 300 islands, making bank branches costly to deploy and leaving remote communities harder to serve. Fintech is therefore becoming core infrastructure for payments, remittances and financial inclusion in an economy reliant on tourism, agriculture and services. GDP per capita is about $7,000, while the Reserve Bank of Fiji oversees a banking market dominated by institutions including ANZ Fiji and Westpac Fiji.

A May 29, 2026, report said Fiji’s National Digital Strategy 2025-2030 is anchoring efforts to expand connectivity, public services and access to finance. Payment providers handled 116.4 million digital-wallet transactions worth F$7.3 billion in 2025, while QR payments reached F$672.3 million. Fiji had 957,816 registered e-money users at year-end, with 722,340, or 75.4%, active. The Reserve Bank of Fiji is also pursuing a single standardised QR code as M-PAiSA and MyCash Fiji gain importance.

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