The Bank of Zambia has revoked an operating licence for Celpay Zambia Limited, a mobile banking and payment solution service provider for failure to sustain its operations.

According to the bank, the revocation of the license means that the company has ceased to operate in Zambia as a payment system business under the country’s National Payment System Act.

The Bank of Zambia head of public relations Kanguya Mayondi said the revocation of the license follows the inability of Celpay Zambia to sustain its business operations as required by the Zambian law.

“The revocation follows the inability of Celpay Zambia Limited to sustain its business operations and is made pursuant to the National Payment System Act number one of 2007, which confers upon the Bank of Zambia powers to revoke the license of any payment system business that contravenes the law,” Mayondi said.

Celpay Zambia was owned by Celpay International BV, a Dutch mobile banking and payment solution service provider. Celpay International has operations in other countries in Africa including the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zimbabwe.

Celpay Zambia was the first to be granted license by the Bank of Zambia to provide mobile banking services in Zambia but has recently faced stiff competition from mobile service providers MTN and Airtel who are also providing mobile money services in the country.

Both MTN and Airtel claim they each have close to two million mobile money users in the country.