Payment system expected to reduce cost of remittances goes live in SADC region

The Transactions Cleared on an Immediate Basis (TCIB) is the Southern African Development Community’s (SADC) instant payments solution for the region and a first of its kind in the region.  It works on a real-time, interoperable, cross-border payments scheme that offers financial services (both banks and non-banks) corridors to expand the reach of convenient financial services.

Timeline

*BankservAfrica is an automated clearing house located in Johannesburg, South Africa, serving both national and pan-African transactions

The roots of the TCIB

Regional payment integration in SADC is hardly a new concept. In July 2013 the SADC-RTGS platform (formerly known as SIRESS) was launched in a pilot program involving South Africa, Namibia, Eswatini, and Lesotho. 

“Siress (now known as SADC-RTGS) went live in the CMA [rand common monetary area] in July (2013) and is now processing R10bn a day.” 

Brad Gillis, CEO of Bankserve-Africa