BankservAfrica yesterday announced the South African Rerserve Bank’s intention to acquire 50% of the company in an initiative with commercial banks to transform South Africa’s digital payments ecosystem.
The partnership is part of a broader initiative involving commercial banks to transition the company into a national Payments Utility.
This strategic collaboration is poised to modernise the national payment system, enhancing its security, inclusivity, and efficiency.
BankservAfrica’s CEO Stephen Linnell said their role has always been to provide essential payment services to financial institutions.
“This consequential partnership between the company, its commercial bank shareholders and the SARB, signifies both a continuation and expansion of that role as we focus more deliberately on financial inclusion through affordable access to modern payment capabilities,” Linnell said.
While the partnership is still contingent upon the finalisation of detailed transaction agreements and regulatory approvals, further insights into the prospective deal are expected once all formalities are completed.
The collaboration aligns with ongoing efforts to bring more citizens into the digital payment fold, which remains critical for economic growth and stability.
A foundational offering of the envisioned Payments Utility is PayShap, a service launched by BankservAfrica in March last year that allows South Africans to make instant payments.
Growing rapidly with more than 1 million transactions per day, PayShap enables more accessible, convenient and secure payments for everyday transactions.
Last month, FNB said R2 billion worth of transactions were concluded via PayShap, making it an important payment mechanism to accelerate successes in cash to digital migration and financial inclusion.
At the beginning of October, Standard Bank said it has experienced a significant increase in instant payments, driven by a growing uptake of PayShap, while other immediate interbank transactions have continued to grow.
Over the past year, the number of Standard Bank clients registering for PayShap grew by 9%, and active use of ShapID for transactions has increased tenfold (817%) year-on-year.
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