Standard Bank, South Africa’s largest bank by assets, has become the first African bank to directly integrate with China’s Cross-Border Interbank Payment System (CIPS). The move unlocks a faster route for African companies to pay Chinese suppliers in Renminbi (RMB), China’s currency, instead of the US dollar.
Until now, African businesses have typically routed trade payments through the US dollar, with risks of adding delays, fees, and exposure to exchange-rate volatility. Cutting out the dollar middleman means faster, simpler, and potentially cheaper cross-border deals with Africa’s biggest trading partner.
Chinese goods now account for a growing share of Africa’s economy. Standard Bank’s 2024 Trade Barometer shows 34% of African businesses import from China, up from 23% last year. China-Africa trade surpassed $134 billion in the first five months of 2025, up 12.4% year-on-year. Finished goods dominate the import side, while raw materials like minerals and crude oil flow back the other way. Key African importers from China include Nigeria, South Africa, and Egypt.
CIPS is a clearing and settlement platform that enables financial institutions worldwide to directly clear and settle cross-border payments. It now connects Standard Bank to China’s payment system, so it can send and receive money directly in RMB. When a payment is made, the bank sends instructions to CIPS, either through its own network, and CIPS processes the transfer in real or near real time. The system supports both instant settlement and batches of payments to reduce costs and improve liquidity.
Standard Bank secured its CIPS licence in June and has already gone live on its digital platforms, especially useful for sectors that lean heavily on Chinese supply chains, from electronics to construction materials and manufacturing.
With operations across 21 African markets, including heavy import hubs like Nigeria, South Africa, and Egypt, the lender claims that RMB settlement could ease cash-flow pressure for these companies and remove transaction headaches tied to dollar liquidity and fluctuating exchange controls.
“We are keen advocates for Africa’s growth, and this new service is tailored to provide solutions that meet our clients’ needs where they operate. CIPS will enable more integration with a key trading partner and offer our clients diverse options for optimising their operations,” said Crosby Mkhwanazi, Head of Client Coverage at Standard Bank Corporate and Investment Banking.
For Standard Bank, the move comes at a time of U.S trade policy shifts, and when countries are increasingly pushing for payment systems that do not rely entirely on the dollar.
