No dollar can save Africa R887bn

A payment system that eliminates the dollar in cross-border African transactions can save the continent as much as R887 billion in processing costs, the head of business and commercial banking at the continent's biggest bank said.

Having to clear transactions through US or European banks burdens African businesses with delays and expenses, said Tunde Macaulay of Standard Bank Group.

A unified payment system under the new African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) pact looks set to improve this, according to the banker who has worked across the continent for 25 years.