Statement from the Competition Council

Rabat, October 31, 2025 – In the framework of implementing the commitments made by the Interbank Electronic Payment Center (CMI) and made mandatory by Decision No. 152/D/2024 of the Competition Council, the CMI had committed to cease its acquisition activity and transfer all its merchant membership contracts to card systems by October 31, 2025. However, it has been decided that the CMI will continue to operate as a multi-acquirer technical platform under objective and transparent conditions.

These commitments aim to promote the opening of the acquisition market to new players, particularly Payment Institutions (PIs), in order to stimulate competition and improve the quality and diversity of services offered to merchants.

As the deadline approaches, the CMI has requested an extension of the aforementioned deadline by six (6) months, until April 30, 2026, citing the necessary time for obtaining the required authorizations, and the organization by our country of the Africa Cup of Nations (CAN 2025), a major event that will require maximum resources to avoid any disruption of electronic payment services.

After examining the arguments put forward by the CMI, the Competition Council met on October 27, 2025, and decided to grant:

• an extension of six (6) months, until April 30, 2026, for the transfer of contracts concluded with government agencies and public institutions;
• an extension of three (3) months, until January 31, 2026, for the transfer of other merchant contracts.

This extension of deadlines aims to ensure the success of the transfer process under controlled technical and regulatory conditions, while ensuring an effective and rapid opening of the market to competition.

In order to ensure the effective implementation of this commitment within the new deadlines set, the Council has also attached this extension with a daily penalty applicable in case of non-compliance with the revised deadlines.

The Council will continuously monitor the implementation of these commitments and ensure that the transition to a more competitive market takes place within the new deadlines set and in full compliance with competition rules.