National Card Scheme (LankaPay–JCB)A domestic scheme co-badged with JCB, an interesting hybrid: sovereignty and low domestic fees, plus international acceptance through the Japanese partner. Phase one covered debit; phase two added credit under the name “LankaPay 2 in 1.”LankaClear (Pvt) Ltd (in partnership with JCB International) · since 2019Accepted at more than 4,800 ATMs on the LankaPay network at launch (CBSL)
Global registry · Asia-Pacific · South Asia
Sri Lanka Payment systems
11 systems listed.
This country doesn’t have a written market analysis yet: e-commerce shares, regulator, and key players are still to be documented. The systems below, however, are verified.
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Payments in Oceania and CanadaPayments in Central AsiaPayments in South Asia outside IndiaPayments in Southeast AsiaPayments in Japan and KoreaPayments in Malaysia and SingaporeAccepting payments in Australia and New ZealandAccepting payments in Indonesia and ThailandAccepting payments in Japan and South KoreaAccepting payments in Southeast AsiaPayments in Asia: super-apps, public rails, and cross-border QROpening a new market: the payments playbook
Card schemes
Instant payments
JustPayMerchant layer on top of CEFTS for low-value payments (with a regulatory per-transaction cap) and fees capped by the central bank. An administered pricing model worth knowing: it makes acceptance cheaper than cards.LankaClear (Pvt) Ltd · since 2016
LankaPay CCAPS / Common Electronic Fund Transfer Switch (CEFTS)Sri Lanka’s 24/7 instant rail and a building block of the national LankaPay system (CCAPS). Its rise from 8% to 67% of interbank flows in six years is one of the fastest shifts in the region.LankaClear (Pvt) Ltd (supervised by the Central Bank of Sri Lanka) · since 201567% of the country’s interbank transactions, up from 8% six years earlier (CBSL/LankaPay)
LankaPay CEFTSSri Lanka’s Common Electronic Fund Transfer Switch, running 24/7, with the JustPay (low-value payments) and LANKAQR layers on top. One of the few South Asian instant rails run by a private clearing house owned by the central bank and the banks.LankaClear · since 2015
Clearing and settlement
CITS (Cheque Imaging and Truncation System)Nationwide check image clearing, one of the first in the region.LankaClear (Pvt) Ltd · since 2006
SLIPS (Sri Lanka Interbank Payment System)Long-standing ACH with deferred net settlement (salaries, direct debits). Gradually drained by CEFTS but still used for batch payments.LankaClear (Pvt) Ltd · since 1994
Mobile money
eZ CashTelco-led mobile money, approved by Sri Lanka's central bank and available without a bank account, including to customers of a rival carrier. Two wallet tiers, based on the daily limit. The service connects to the national rails, with top-ups from bank accounts and QR payments, and extends into the group's other apps. The central bank recognizes only two mobile payment systems of this kind in the country.Dialog Axiata PLC
mCashThe second of Sri Lanka's two licensed mobile payment systems, both run by telecom carriers. It has a very broad collection network (utility bills, insurance, leasing, agency banking), and acceptance is connected to LANKAQR. A useful counterexample to the “mobile money wins everywhere” narrative: in Sri Lanka, most retail payments have gone through the CEFTS and JustPay bank rails, not telco wallets.Mobitel (mobile carrier of the Sri Lanka Telecom group, marketed under the SLT-Mobitel brand)
Interoperable QR
LANKAQREMVCo-compliant national QR standard: any LANKAQR-certified app can pay any merchant displaying the code. It served as the entry point for accepting India’s UPI in Sri Lanka.Central Bank of Sri Lanka / LankaClear · since 2018
Other
GovPayOne-stop portal for paying for public services, built on the LankaPay rails. A recent example of G2C/C2G payments built on shared national infrastructure rather than on a private PSP.LankaPay/LankaClear for the Sri Lankan government · since 2025
LankaSettle (RTGS and SSSS)RTGS coupled with the government securities depository (Scripless Securities Settlement System). The final settlement point for CEFTS, SLIPS, and CITS.Central Bank of Sri Lanka · since 2003