The reports on the US potentially removing South Africa from the SWIFT (Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication) system emerged prominently in late August 2025, amid escalating US-South Africa tensions over foreign policy. SWIFT is a Belgium-based messaging network facilitating secure cross-border payments, used by over 11,000 institutions for 95% of global high-value transactions. While not a direct payment system, exclusion would effectively sever international banking ties, as has been seen in past sanctions against other countries such as Russia and Iran.
The catalyst for South Africa’s exclusion from SWIFT, was a proposal of a US congressional bill introduced by Republican lawmakers in August 2025, calling for a comprehensive review of bilateral relations. The bill alleges South Africa supports US “adversaries” through its BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) membership, non-alignment on the Russia-Ukraine war, and ICJ case against Israel over Gaza (filed in December 2023).
Likelihood of Exclusion and Potential Fall-Out
While an imminent removal of South Africa from the SWIFT system is fairly unlikely at this stage, due to the requirement that a SWIFT disconnection would need multilateral buy-in from other SWIFT partners – the EU and UK, which is unlikely, without SA violating sanctions directly (e.g., aiding Russia evading bans). Although South Africa seems to be sailing close to the wind in their actions in this regard recently.
Impact of such a removal however holds a deep economic impact potential. When Russia was removed in 2022, it resulted in an Immediate 30% devaluation in the Ruble, $300 billion reserves were frozen, while the Russian GDP contracted by -2.1% (2022) vs. a 3% global GDP growth and Imports dropped by 20%, with inflation hitting the 17% mark.
Verto, a provider of cross-border payment solutions, says the potential impact of South Africa’s possible removal from the SWIFT payment system highlights the need for the country to diversify its financial infrastructure.
James Booth, Head of Revenue at Verto, says any threat of SWIFT exclusion is a serious concern for the South African economy. “SWIFT underpins most international trade and finance, and South Africa is a key payments and trade hub for the continent,” Booth adds.
“Disconnection would disrupt flows of capital, trade, and remittances. That said, these risks also highlight why South Africa and the wider region need to diversify settlement options, including regional payment systems and even crypto solutions like stablecoins. These alternatives won’t fully replace SWIFT in the short term, but they can provide important resilience and reduce over-reliance on a single network controlled outside Africa.”
Alternative Payment Solutions Critical
The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) is reportedly already looking at alternatives, and while alternatives do exist, none can fully replace the SWIFT payment solution alone at this point.
While new fintech options such as Ripple/XRP, currently used by some SA banks SA’s for remittances, stablecoins and blockchain rails could help mitigate some of the disruption by enabling faster and cheaper settlement, they cannot fully offset the impact.
“They still depend on local on- and off-ramps into fiat currencies, which are tightly regulated and often still linked to the global banking system. So, while stablecoins may cushion some of the blow, they cannot fully offset the disruption that exclusion from SWIFT would create,” Booth says.
Looking ahead to the African Continental Free-Trade Area (AfCFTA), Booth points to the critical importance of developing alternatives.
“Alternatives are essential if AfCFTA is going to reach its potential. Today, more than 80% of Africa’s cross-border transactions still settle through banks outside the continent, often adding cost, time, and political risk,” he says.
Scaling Alternatives is the Challenge
Booth notes that regional solutions like the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System are a significant step forward, enabling direct settlement of African currencies within the continent.
“Stablecoins can also play a complementary role, offering near-instant settlement in digital dollars,” he adds.
“The challenge will be scaling these solutions responsibly, with regulatory clarity and trusted on-ramps. Done right, a mix of regional infrastructure and digital innovation can safeguard South Africa’s economy and create more self-sufficient payment rails for the continent.”
An additional option, for South Africa could be China’s Cross-Border Interbank Payment System (CIPS). This is a Yuan-denominated payment system, used by 1,500+ institutions (SA banks like ICBC joined 2023). CPIS handles $20 trillion annually, focused on Asia-Africa. The Pros for such a move would be SA’s $50 billion China trade aligns; faster/cheaper than SWIFT. However the Cons may outweigh this due to Yuan volatility, and the potential risk of US secondary sanctions.
The other downside to developing an alternative would be the time required to settle a viable international payment system with the countries trading partners that could take up to two years to implement and cost $1-2 billion in integration costs.
