A global guide to the SMB market for fintechs and financial service providers

South Africa

Read on to learn about:

• The size and composition of the small business market in South Africa
• The fintech ecosystem and regulatory environment
• The top financial platforms in the region

The market at a glance

Size & make up of the market

Only 37% of the SMBs in South Africa (1.7M) are considered 'formal' - i.e., officially registered. The contribution of SMBs to the South African economy has more than doubled between 2010 and 2020, from 18% to 40%.

International trade

Only around 3% of South African SMBs are estimated to participate in exporting internationally.

Most popular financial software

First National Bank (FNB), a bank that offers a free accounting add-on for business banking customers is the clear leader in accounting software. The USP of its Instant Accounting product is that it automatically creates financial statements from users' bank statements.

Fintech ecosystem

South Africa is a major regional fintech hub for the African continent and ranks #44 out of 83 globally, according to Findexable.

Top financial software platforms

59%

564k (formal) SMBs in South Africa have specialist bookkeeping or ERP software

33%

of (formal) SMBs in South Africa use spreadsheets in place of accounting software

9%

fully outsource bookkeeping to accountants