BankservAfrica is an automated clearing house located in

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu language, Zulu and Xhosa language, Xhosa: eGoli ) (colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, Jo'burg or "The City of Gold") is the most populous city in South Africa. With 5,538,596 people in the City of Johannesburg alon ...

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, serving both national and

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transactions. It annually processes a significant volume of transactions, encompassing various sectors such as banking, corporates, government, and retail. Its role as Africa's largest automated payments clearing house is primarily attributed to its substantial transaction volume.

History

The establishment of BankservAfrica originated from the need to unify shared services within the South African banking industry. Prior to its formation in 1972 as the Automated Clearing Bureau (Pty) Limited, various industry-owned companies operated independently in different payment channels. The transformation aimed to streamline operations, leading to the eventual rebranding as BankservAfrica in 2010.

Shareholders

BankservAfrica is entirely owned by South African commercial banks, with the following shareholders:
/ref> * Absa Group Limited, Absa Bank Limited (23.125%) * FirstRand Limited (23.125%) * Nedbank Limited (23.125%) * Standard Bank of South Africa Limited (23.125%) * Dandyshelf Group (7.5%), comprising: ** Grobank **

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Activities

BankservAfrica plays a pivotal role in ensuring regulated and compliant interbank transactions aligned with international standards. Its significance as a trusted partner in the South African financial services industry contributes to the stability of the national payments system. The company operates under the oversight of the Payments Association of South Africa, the South African Reserve Bank, and other central banks within the African region. Notably, BankservAfrica introduced the groundbreaking SASWITCH brand in the 1980s, enabling remote ATM access across various institutions, regardless of network protocol.

Services

BankservAfrica offers a comprehensive range of services, including payment collection, switching, clearing, settlement, consulting, system hosting, and business process outsourcing. It also provides

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bureau and payment solutions, disaster recovery, and business continuity services. The company employs dual processing through production and disaster recovery sites, ensuring uninterrupted core processing in the event of a disaster.

References

External links

* * {{LinkedIn page, company/bankservafrica Banking in South Africa Financial services companies established in 1993 Payment clearing systems Companies of South Africa