By Mon Lay / MPA
Nay Pyi Taw — Myanmar’s military regime has unveiled plans to integrate the country’s financial systems with national identity and biometric databases, a move experts and activists warn marks a dangerous shift toward “digital authoritarianism” aimed at crushing dissent and squeezing the economy.
During a meeting of the National Payments System Oversight Committee in Nay Pyi Taw on Saturday (January 10), junta officials outlined a strategy to synchronize private bank accounts and ubiquitous mobile wallets—such as KPay and Wave Money—directly with the Immigration Department’s e-ID system and SIM card registries.
Analysts say this integration would grant the military near-real-time access to the financial history and physical location of millions of citizens.
By cross-referencing financial transactions with SIM card data and biometric IDs, the regime aims to create a dragnet to track funding streams and individuals.
“This is not modernization; it is a massive violation of data privacy,” said an IT security expert who requested anonymity. “By linking e-KYC (Know Your Customer) systems across government departments, they are effectively building a state-wide surveillance apparatus to monitor the population.”
The meeting also focused on monitoring e-commerce businesses to increase tax collection.
With the country’s economy in a tailspin, analysts believe the regime is seeking new ways to extract revenue from the informal sector while simultaneously cutting off financial lifelines to the pro-democracy resistance.
“The military is losing ground on the battlefield, so they are trying to pick pockets online,” said a political analyst. “
The involvement of the Ministry of Defence in a meeting about payment systems confirms that this is a military objective, not an economic one. They want to hunt down donors and block revolution funding.”
The junta has branded the initiative as part of a “National Payment Strategy (2026-2030).” However, public trust remains non-existent, and the reality of Myanmar’s crumbling infrastructure poses a significant hurdle.
“They cannot even provide consistent electricity or stable internet, yet they want to link every piece of our private data,” said a local online vendor, expressing the fear felt by many. “It feels unsafe. It seems they want to watch over us even when we are spending our own money.”
While technical challenges may delay full implementation, experts warn that the regime’s intent is clear: to utilize digital tools to hold the population hostage and tighten its grip on power.
