Russian software developer ready to introduce Palestine to electronic money

A Russian software developer has been contracted to help Palestine deliver on its ambitious plan for the creation of a national payment system and the eventual adoption of a national currency.

BPC Banking Technologies, a software-developing multinational headquartered in Russia, has been contracted to help the Palestinian administration deliver on its ambitious plan for the creation of a national payment system and the eventual adoption of a national currency. Last month, the Russian company won a tender organized by the Palestine Monetary Authority (PMA), the most likely prototype of the future Central Bank of Palestine, East-West Digital News, the international resource on Russian digital industries, reported yesterday. The tender was announced back in March 2013 in an effort to dramatically improve Palestine?s retail payments infrastructure. What has been christened as Palestine?s National Switch project, an unprecedented cooperative effort involving the PMA, local banks, and international experts, calls for the adoption of BPC?s proprietary SmartVista software solution. The Palestinian Authority hopes that this will ensure ?safe, efficient and swift automatic settlements of funds between banks? and bolster a decisive move away from cash, checks, and other risky paper-based instruments towards e-money...