Bill Blackie is Chief Executive Officer of Business and Commercial Banking at Standard Bank Group Ltd. As a bank committed to driving Africa’s growth, Standard Bank recognises the relevance of China to the growth of our continent. As the continent’s biggest bank by assets, present in 20 markets across sub-Saharan Africa, our vision for Africa’s
Rising youth unemployment in South Africa is a critical challenge that requires immediate action due to the far-reaching implications it has for the country’s economic growth, social stability and the wellbeing of future generations. The recently released Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS) shows that South Africa’s unemployment rate for the first quarter of 2023 was
Between 2020 and 2021, the number of tech start-ups in Africa tripled to around 5,200 companies. Just under half of them were fintechs, making it the fastest-growing start-up industry in Africa. Their success is due to several trends such as the digital boom during the pandemic and increasing smartphone ownership and internet coverage, as well
While implementing internal controls to protect organisations from fraud and cybercrime takes time, it is imperative that strict controls are in place to mitigate opportunistic as well as organised fraudulent activities, says Ryan Mer, CEO of eftsure Africa, a Know Your Payee™ (KYP) platform provider. In recent years, cybercrime has transformed from a solitary activity
Consumers in South Africa are experiencing escalating levels of financial stress and are actively seeking alternative forms of payment due to the country’s rising cost of living. The use of developing digital payments are gaining pace in South Africa and statistics show that there is a rising desire for credit among consumers with digital payment
By Harsha Maloo, Head of Payments at Synthesis In the rapidly evolving landscape of cross-border payments, one trend stands out as a game-changer: the migration of SWIFT (Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication) into the ISO 20022 standards. This shift impacts global banks and holds significant potential for transforming the way we conduct international transactions. With
Payments as a Service provider, Network International (NI) is excited to announce that it has been appointed as a digital payments technology partner to Vodacom Financial and Digital Lifestyle Services. This means it will provide a fully managed service offering. The NI omni-channel digital payment capabilities will allow card holders to pay anywhere in multiple
Modern point of sale solutions with smart value adds can make a significant difference to small business growth and customer engagement, explains Gareth Corbishley, Commercial Lead at Halo Dot. Most businesses, when faced with the point of sale (POS) conversation, get inundated by potential solutions. It’s a minefield of acronyms, lingo, and depreciating hardware. In
Standard Bank has been named as most admired financial services brand, as announced by Brand Africa in the release of its latest research and rankings. Standard Bank was crowned ahead of its competitors in a specific category ranking of the Top 25 financial services brands on the continent jumping from its 6th ranking position in
With the ongoing rise in interest rates in South Africa, businesses are increasingly faced with the daunting task of obtaining affordable financing. And with higher interest rates comes the burden of higher borrowing costs. CredX, launched by the Shoprite Group in 2022, enables its suppliers to obtain critical working capital funding at the lowest industry
