South Africa: Financial Services

South Africa's Market Practitioners Group has formally endorsed the development of Term ZARONIA, a forward-looking reference rate designed to replace JIBAR before its year-end 2026 discontinuation.

Banks are rapidly deploying artificial intelligence across critical functions like credit decisioning, fraud detection, and customer engagement, but beneath the efficiency gains lies a growing risk: AI debt.

South Africa's Reserve Bank has proposed a new regulatory framework that could fundamentally reshape how fintech companies access the national payment system.

South Africa's cryptocurrency landscape is undergoing a fundamental regulatory shift as draft Capital Flow Management Regulations formally bring crypto assets within the country's exchange control framework. The proposed changes would replace the 1961 Exchange Control Regulations entirely, positioning licensed crypto asset service providers as mandatory intermediaries for significant transactions and requiring residents to declare cross-border crypto holdings within strict thresholds.

When Ethiopia began filling the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam in 2020, it was not merely generating hydroelectric power; it was redirecting a continental resource to transform its economic future.

South Africa’s freight and passenger infrastructure is in dire need of an overhaul. With public debt having skyrocketed and state-owned companies’ finances too weak to handle the load...

The South African Reserve Bank's November 2025 draft Directive in respect of specific payment activities makes a subtle but material change to the way "e‑money" is defined and supervised.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is rapidly transforming South Africa's financial sector, driving innovation, operational efficiency, and new customer experiences.

South Africa has achieved two landmark improvements in international perception and operating conditions within weeks: S&P Global upgraded the sovereign credit ratings...