Electronic Funds Transfer System is payment method that is now being preferred over cheques and it might be a matter of time before this becomes the mode of settling payments and collections.

This is a system where by money is transferred directly from one account to the other without any paper money changing hands.

Most government agencies in Uganda are currently using this system. If you have offered a service to government of late, you will notice that effecting of your payment is done directly to your bank.

The other payment similar to this one is RTGS (Real Time Gross Settlement) though this one will attract a lot more in terms of bank charges as compared to EFT, but the money gets to your account almost instantly from the time of effecting payment.

Both methods are faster than the traditional cheque which normally takes 4 days clearing time. Assuming there is a weekend or a public holiday in between, then the clearing time will be extended by that period.

This might mark the beginning of paper less money and give rise to increased credit card use in Uganda now that the Point of Sale, Credit Card, ATMs etc are all executed through an electronic terminal.