Electronic payments are clearly accelerating in Tunisia. According to the 17th bulletin “Payments in Figures” published by the Central Bank of Tunisia (BCT), the first half of 2026 confirms a growth in digital usage and proximity payments, while checks continue to decline.
Key figures for the first half of 2026
E-payment : 10.3 million operations, i.e. +22.1 %
Mobile payment : 5 million transactions, i.e. +31.5 %
Checks : 3.6 million operations, i.e. −10.7 %
Monetary activity : payments now account for 42 % of operations, vs 38 % a year earlier.
E-payments and proximity payments on a strong rise
Online payments grow by 22.1 % in volume, with 10.3 million transactions, and by 28.1 % in value, to 771.4 million dinars, compared with the first half of 2025.
Proximity payments also follow a dynamic trajectory: +18.8 % in volume and +16.6 % in value, to reach 25.3 million operations and 3 063.8 million dinars.
This progression is accompanied by an expansion of the acceptance network. Tunisia now has 1 456 active merchant sites, up 19.7 % from end-2025, as well as 45,600 electronic payment terminals (EPTs), up 5.7 %.
Mobile payment jumps 31.5 % in number of operations
Mobile payment shows the strongest increase in the number of operations among the main segments presented in the bulletin.
In the first half of 2026, 5 million transactions were recorded, up 31.5 % year over year. Their value reaches 914.2 million dinars, up 17.7 %.
The country also has 512,000 electronic wallets, i.e., wallets, up 16.4 % from end-2025, as well as 18 payment service providers.
Notably, payment constitutes the dominant use of mobile. It accounts for 67.1 % of the number of transactions and 62 % of the amounts processed.
What is mobile payment used for in Tunisia?
In number of transactions
Payments : 67.1 % • Transfers : 17.1 % • Cash-in : 11 % • Cash-out : 4.8 %
In amount
Payments : 62 % • Cash-in : 16.5 % • Transfers : 12.8 % • Cash-out : 8.7 %
In terms of number of operations, transfers account for 17.1%, cash-in 11%, and cash-out 4.8%. In value, their shares reach respectively 12.8%, 16.5% and 8.7%.
Thus, wallets are not used solely to transfer or withdraw money: in the data published by the BCT, payment already constitutes the main use.
The Central Bank also mentions, among sector projects, paying school registrations via USSD and wallet as well as adopting the national mobile payment label TunPay.
The payment function is advancing, but withdrawals remain dominant
Overall monetary activity is also rising. It reaches 85.4 million operations in the first half of 2026, i.e. +9.8 %, for an amount of 15.425 billion dinars, up 11.2 %. Tunisia now has 6.151 million bank cards, up 5.1 % from end-2025, as well as 3 427 ATMs, up 3.8 %. Withdrawals nevertheless remain the majority. In the first half of 2026, payments represent 42 % of the number of monetary activity operations, leaving 58 % to cash-out.
The gap is even more pronounced in value: payments account for 25 % of the amounts, versus 75 % for cash-out.
But the year-over-year comparison also shows that the payment function is gaining ground. In H1 2025, payments accounted for 38 % of the number of operations and 23 % of the amounts. A year later, these proportions reach 42 % and 25 %, respectively.
Therefore, the growth of electronic payment does not yet mean the disappearance of cash withdrawals, but data show a gradual evolution of usage.
The cheque continues its decline
In the telecompensation system, 30.1 million operations were processed in the first half of 2026 for a total amount of 109.604 billion dinars. The number of operations rises by 5.3 % and their amount by 3.6 % compared with the first half of 2025.
Most instruments show a rise in value: transfers rise by 8.4 %, debits by 10.6 %, and bills of exchange by 9.7 %.
The cheque is moving in the opposite direction.
In the first half of 2026, 3.6 million cheques were processed for a total amount of 24.146 billion dinars. Their number fell by 10.7 % year over year and their value by 12.5 %.
The BCT bulletin thus notes a further decrease in cheque usage, without directly attributing the causes of this evolution in the document.
High-value interbank amounts remain almost stable
Finally, the Elyssa-RTGS system, intended for the settlement of high-value interbank operations, records 218,886 transactions in the first half of 2026, compared with 207,524 a year earlier, i.e. an increase of 5.5 %.
The amount settled reaches 2 880.1 billion dinars, versus 2 868.2 billion in the first half of 2025, i.e. a rise of only 0.4 %.
What to remember
E-payment : +22.1 % in the number of operations in H1 2026.
Mobile payment : +31.5 %, with 5 million transactions. Payments already represent 67.1 % of uses by number.
Cheque : −10.7 % in number and −12.5 % in amount over one year.
Monetary activity : the payment function is gaining ground, rising from 38 % to 42 % of operations and from 23 % to 25 % of the amounts. Cash withdrawal remains, however, dominant, particularly in value.
