Electronic Banking Services in Sudan: Between Digital Transformation, Real-World Challenges, and the Need for a Unified Financial Platform”

By Dr Marwa Fouad Gabbani **
Sudan’s banking sector is witnessing a rapid transition towards electronic banking services, as banks seek to keep pace with global technological developments and improve the quality of financial services provided to citizens. Banking applications and electronic payment services have become an essential part of daily life, particularly in major cities, enabling users to conduct financial transactions easily and quickly without visiting traditional bank branches.
Electronic banking services are an integrated system of financial operations and services delivered by banks through modern electronic means and information and communication technologies, allowing customers to conduct transactions via the internet, smartphones, or automated teller machines (ATMs). These services include money transfers, bill payments, balance inquiries, and various electronic payment services, contributing to time and effort savings, reduced operational costs, and improved banking efficiency.
The beginnings of digital transformation
Electronic banking services in Sudan began emerging gradually at the start of the new millennium, when banks introduced computerised systems and ATMs. These services later evolved with the spread of internet access and smartphones to include mobile banking applications, digital transfers, and electronic payment services through bank cards and point-of-sale systems.
The Bank of Sudan also played an important role in supporting this transformation by encouraging banks to modernise their electronic systems and expand financial inclusion. Sudan currently hosts around 38 state-owned, private, and foreign banks offering a variety of banking services, including electronic banking, which has expanded significantly in recent years.
With Sudan’s population now exceeding 51 million people, and with rising smartphone usage among young people, demand for electronic banking applications has increased markedly. The number of users is estimated at around 13.5 million, despite the absence of precise statistics regarding the actual number and volume of transactions conducted through each application.
Success of banking applications and the challenges of dependence on them
There is little doubt that banking applications in Sudan — particularly the Bankak application operated by Bank of Khartoum — have greatly facilitated financial transactions and saved citizens significant time and effort, to the extent that they have become central to daily life and financial dealings, especially under the exceptional circumstances currently facing the country.
These applications have played an important role in supporting digital transformation and reducing dependence on cash transactions, helping commercial activity and daily services continue while enabling citizens to transfer money and settle financial obligations quickly and conveniently.
However, the article argues that the heavy reliance on a limited number of applications, combined with repeated service disruptions and prolonged outages, raises serious concerns regarding the stability and reliability of Sudan’s digital financial system. Disruptions to digital banking services are no longer viewed as temporary technical faults, but rather as events with direct consequences for citizens’ daily lives, market activity, and the wider economy.
From the perspective of strategic planning and digital transformation, the author contends that excessive reliance on isolated applications without a unified, flexible digital financial infrastructure increases operational risks and underscores the need for a more integrated, stable banking ecosystem.
Infrastructure and cybersecurity challenges
Despite the growing adoption of electronic banking services, Sudan’s digital banking transformation still faces complex challenges, foremost among them, weak technological infrastructure. Some regions continue to suffer from poor internet and telecommunications services, alongside frequent electricity outages, all of which directly affect the efficiency of banking applications and the stability of electronic services.
The rapid expansion in the use of digital services has also increased pressure on telecommunications networks, sometimes leading to slow application performance or service interruptions during peak periods, especially given the limited capacity of data centres and the inadequate readiness of digital infrastructure in certain areas.
Cybersecurity challenges are likewise among the most pressing concerns facing Sudan’s electronic banking sector, amid increasing risks of cyberattacks, online fraud, and data theft. This, the article notes, requires greater investment in digital protection and cybersecurity systems to ensure the safety of transactions and the protection of customer information.
At the same time, current economic conditions — including inflation, rising foreign currency prices, and limited liquidity — have negatively affected public confidence in the banking system, which, in turn, has affected the use of electronic banking services.
The need for a unified financial platform
In light of these challenges, the article argues that Sudan requires a more comprehensive strategic vision for developing its digital financial infrastructure, one that diversifies service sources and reduces the risks associated with reliance on isolated systems.
Within this framework, the proposal to establish a unified national financial transactions platform — supervised by the Bank of Sudan in cooperation with the Ministry of Communications and Digital Transformation — emerges as one of the most important strategic solutions to develop Sudan’s digital banking sector and enhance its efficiency and stability.
Such a platform, the article suggests, could form a centralised infrastructure connecting all Sudanese commercial banks within a unified, secure, and flexible system, enabling transfers, payments, and financial services to be conducted more reliably and efficiently while reducing the impact of individual technical failures affecting any single bank or application.
The success of such a platform would also require adherence to clear operational and technical standards, alongside the enforcement of Service Level Agreements (SLAs) to guarantee minimum levels of service continuity, rapid response to disruptions, and improved performance efficiency, thereby providing citizens with stable, secure, and high-quality financial services.
A promising future requiring support
The author believes that the future of electronic banking services in Sudan offers significant growth opportunities, particularly as smartphone and internet use among young people continues to expand. However, achieving this growth will require improvements in telecommunications and electricity infrastructure, greater digital literacy, updated banking legislation, and stronger cybersecurity systems, as well as the development of a more integrated and resilient digital financial infrastructure.
In the context of the global shift towards the digital economy, electronic banking services remain one of the most important tools for supporting the Sudanese economy, enhancing financial inclusion, and improving service quality — provided that the appropriate technical and regulatory environment exists to support this transformation sustainably.
Ultimately, the article concludes, genuine digital transformation should not be measured solely by the number of banking applications available, but rather by the state’s ability to build a fully integrated, reliable digital financial system that functions efficiently under all circumstances.
** An expert in strategic planning and digital transformation

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