The clock is ticking on South African banks’ biggest advantage
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South Africa's telecom operators (Vodacom, MTN) have been pushing into financial services but face a structural barrier: the Banks Act prevents them from taking deposits without a licensed banking partner. This regulatory wall forces MoMo and VodaPay to route transactions through banks like African Bank. However, the Reserve Bank's ongoing payments reform — expected to finalize around 2026-2027 — will grant non-banks direct access to the national payments system, removing the need for a bank intermediary in the payments layer. This doesn't grant deposit-taking rights or a banking licence, leaving banks' core advantage — the full financial data picture from deposit relationships — intact. The analysis argues banks have a closing window to leverage this structural advantage before the payments layer opens further to operators.
