Morocco launches Stay Cashless to digitise tourism payments
Morocco’s Ministry of Tourism, Attijariwafa Bank and Visa have signed an MoU in Rabat to launch Stay Cashless – a national programme to accelerate digital payments across the tourism sector. The initiative aims to simplify transactions for visitors through reduced international commissions, pay‑by‑link, tap‑on‑phone and dynamic currency conversion, with rollout beginning in the coming days via terminal deployment and industry training. The move targets higher spend capture and service consistency amid strong demand – Morocco recorded nearly 20 million visitors and MAD 138 billion in travel receipts in 2025 – and ahead of major events including the 2030 FIFA World Cup and the Africa Cup of Nations.
The programme addresses long‑standing frictions in a cash‑reliant market, where over 60% of card operations in 2024 were ATM withdrawals, currency in circulation reached MAD 444.3 billion (about 26% of GDP), and just 94,387 POS terminals are concentrated in key cities. It follows fee reforms capping interchange at 0.65% and opening the acquiring market to new players in 2025, and targets SMEs to curb practices such as surcharging and card refusal. With mobile wallets underused (13.8 million accounts but only 28% active; mobile payments at 2%), Stay Cashless is positioned to broaden acceptance, improve visitor experience and support tourism‑led growth.
Source: Morocco World News
