The Bank of Papua New Guinea and 15 financial institutions have signed a new voluntary industry code aimed at protecting customers from financial abuse and making banking and financial products safer to use.
Papua New Guinea’s financial sector has launched a coordinated initiative to address the misuse of bank accounts, credit and other financial products to control or exploit individuals.
The Bank of Papua New Guinea and 15 financial institutions signed the PNG Empower Finance Code during the Alliance for Financial Inclusion Global Policy Forum held in Port Moresby.
BPNG Governor Elizabeth Genia said financial abuse could undermine financial inclusion, participation in the economy and trust in the financial system.
Financial abuse can include taking control of another person’s income, creating debts in their name, restricting access to money, misusing passwords or accounts, or using financial products to intimidate or exercise control.
The voluntary code was co-designed with the financial sector through the PNG Empower Finance Community of Practice, established by BPNG in May.
Banks, savings and loan societies, finance companies, superannuation funds and payment-service providers are participating in the initiative.
The programme is supported by the International Finance Corporation, the Australian Government’s PNG Women Lead programme and the Centre for Excellence in Financial Inclusion.
Signatories have committed to working collectively to identify risks, building customer financial capability, promoting safer financial services and reporting on lessons and progress.
The code does not impose additional legal or regulatory requirements. Instead, participating institutions will examine how their products and systems could be misused, improve staff awareness and progressively introduce practical safeguards.
CEFI is also developing training on financial abuse, with the intention of incorporating the subject into wider financial education programmes.
BPNG says it is, to its knowledge, the first central bank or financial regulator to bring financial institutions together to co-design an industry code specifically targeting financial abuse.
The initiative was presented to central bankers and regulators from 79 countries attending the global forum in Port Moresby.
For Papua New Guinea’s rapidly evolving financial services sector, the code links the expansion of financial inclusion with stronger consumer safeguards, recognising that greater access to banking must be accompanied by systems that protect customers from exploitation and misuse.
