Financial technology and banking
South Africa's Reserve Bank has outlined a 2027 timetable for fintechs, retailers and telecoms to access payment infrastructure without bank sponsors.
South Africa is Visa Destinations’ first African market. The travel-discovery platform could help local merchants, but usage data is still absent.
Standard Bank has agreed to invest up to $200m in OPay alongside a proposed US listing. The deal is conditional and the final stake is capped.
Absa has turned 215 South African outlets cashless, aims for 456, and will keep teller cash only at selected branches as deposits migrate to ATMs and self-service.
The repo rate is back at 7.25%, raising the cost of financed devices, vehicles and startup borrowing just as technology spending is already under pressure.
Absa has launched institutional digital asset custody in South Africa on Ripple infrastructure, pitching regulated custody, compliance and tokenisation for local institutions.
South Africa’s payment-system rulebook has shifted from PASA to the SARB and PayInc, changing who authorises providers and runs key clearing functions.
PayJustNow is launching an MVNO on Cell C, aiming to turn its buy-now-pay-later customers into mobile subscribers with credit-linked offers.
MTN is evaluating banking licences in selected African markets as MoMo pushes deeper into lending, deposits and balance-sheet risk.
TymeBank's 10-million-customer milestone showed how quickly a digital-first, retail-linked banking model could scale in South Africa.
Prosus is investing US$100 million in Navi, giving the Indian fintech its first institutional capital and extending Naspers-linked bets beyond Tencent.
Lesaka returned to operating profit in its latest update, but soft revenue and the pending Bank Zero deal keep the recovery narrow rather than settled.