The news that Standard Bank, Africa’s largest lender by assets, had become thefirst African bankto directly integrate with China’s cross-border interbank payment system (CIPS) in November was far more than a technical backend update. It signalled a strategic shift in Africa’s financial landscape, challenging the dollar’s long-standing dominance in the region. When viewed alongside moves by Kenya and Ethiopia to renegotiate debt repayments in renminbi (RMB) and Zambia’s decision to accept China’s currency for mining taxes and royalties, a compelling picture emerges.
Practically, Africa is beginning to de-risk from the dollar, signalling a new era of financial multipolarity. Standard Bank’s integration into CIPS was formalised after it was granted a licence at the Lujiazui Forum in Shanghai in June. The system went live in November, marked by a ceremony at the South African Reserve Bank that was attended by Bank governor Lesetja Kganyago, People’s Bank of China governor Pan Gongsheng, and CIPS chair Wang Hongbo.
Both governors highlighted the importance of the system for future payment transactions between commercial entities in both countries. The presence of high-level central bankers highlighted that this was not merely a commercial product launch; it was a strategic alignment of financial plumbing in the Africa-China trade corridor. For years the trade volumes between Africa and China — the continent’s leading sovereign trading partner — have been bottlenecked by a dollar-centric payment system.
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Standard Bank’s own trade barometer indicates a notable increase in the proportion of African businesses sourcing imports from China, from 23% in 2023 to 34% in 2024. Direct RMB settlement via CIPS allows for near real-time clearing. For Africa’s import-intensive sectors (manufacturing, electronics and construction), shaving days off settlement times significantly improves cash flow.
For Standard Bank, which operates in 21 African countries, this first-mover advantage could position it as the primary facilitator of Africa-China trade, strengthening its market dominance in the Africa-China commercial corridor. Should Standard Bank’s CIPS integration prove to be useful and beneficial, and alongside a steadily growing Africa-China commercial corridor, other African banks may find commercial incentives to join CIPS to stay competitive and offer their clients more diverse payment options. To date there has been no official confirmation that other South African banks are interested in joining CIPS. It is likely that other major African and local banks will first want to observe Standard Bank’s experience with CIPS before jumping on the bandwagon.
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