I&M Bank Rwanda will not suspend the use of online card payments system. A senior bank official has said.

According to Innocent Muhizi, the head of information technology and transactional banking services at I&M bank Rwanda, the bank has strong systems in place to deter any kind of fraud and will therefore continue to accept these cards.

The clarification follows the suspension of debit and credit card backed e-commerce transactions by I&M Bank, Kenya on Tuesday, citing a massive increase in online fraud.

Muhizi said, the decision in Kenya does not in any way affect Rwanda.

"We operate separately and employ different operating systems, and therefore we will not suspend our online transaction systems. Besides we have the most prudent measures and soft ware to deter any kind of fraud which is a reassurance to our customers,” Muhizi told The New Times yesterday.

I&M Bank Rwanda recently registered a 300 per cent growth in electronic banking in its bid to support the creation of a cashless economy.

And according to Robin Bairstow the bank’s new boss, electronic banking is essential for the future of the banking sector.

In a recent interview with The New Times, Bairstow vowed to continue investing in e-banking including electronic facilities, like use of credit/debit, including Visa and other cards.

Overall the number of debit cards in the banking industry has increased by 22 per cent from 532,157 in June last year to 654,349 in June this year.

Equally, credit cards, according to central bank, increased by about 135 per cent, from 1,562 to around 3,675, during the same period.

Fraud cases on a rise

Meanwhile, a recent KPMG report revealed a steady increase in number of fraud cases committed through collusion across the region.

It also recommended strong policy and technological measures, including online and mobile banking to deal with the increasing cases of fraud.

Already Central bank has established a special committee to deal with fraud cases and ensure the country’s financial sector is protected from fraudsters.

The committee is expected to meet periodically with stakeholders to discuss ways of combating the crime that is threatening the financial sector.

The country’s banking system liquidity conditions continued to improve and remained comfortable as result of accommodative monetary policies.

According to central bank statistics, the industry’s most liquid assets increased by 25.2%, standing at Rwf354.3 billion in June 2015 from Rwf 282.9 billion at the end of December 2014

The stock of T-bills increased by 19.8%, outstanding repo operations by 65.3% and excess reserves by 38.6percent.

business@newtimes.co.rw