Reserve Bank of Fiji Governor Ariff Ali says the RBF will closely monitor the readiness of commercial banks on the proposed dates for the discontinuation of cheques and will make an assessment within the next few months if the proposed dates are appropriate.
He says furthermore, legislative changes will have to be made to legally validate the reform actions that are being taken, which could take some time.

Mr Ali says in this regard, the RBF wishes to encourage impacted customers to liaise with their banks and enjoy the comfort of knowing they can still access other payment channels in place of cheques.

He says if customers are still not sure of the way forward for them, they are welcome to contact the RBF for further advice.
Governor Ali further states that the RBF and the Association of Banks In Fiji are well aware of the impact of the reform action of phasing out cheques on particular sectors such as the MSMEs, and the senior banking public who have only known cheques as their alternative form of payment apart from cash.

He says all necessary effort will be made to ensure that these users are provided with the relevant information regarding the phase out of cheques together with available plans to other forms of payment, so that they remain confident in being part of the payments system in Fiji.

The Association of Banks In Fiji issued a statement last week, saying beginning July 1 this year, all banks will stop issuing new chequebooks or allow the reordering of chequebooks.

The ABIF also said commencing January 1, 2025, all banks will cease processing customer cheques and any customer-issued cheques presented after that date will be considered stale and dishonoured if attempted to be presented at any ABIF member bank.