JOHANNESBERG, June 29 – China’s central bank has approved Standard Bank and the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) to clear Renminbi (RMB) payments across Africa, giving businesses and financial institutions direct access to China’s onshore financial system for the first time.
The approval comes as Beijing continues its push to expand the global use of the yuan and reduce reliance on the US dollar for international trade and payments.
Under the arrangement, Standard Bank and ICBC will jointly operate as the Renminbi Clearing Bank of Africa, with the capacity to clear RMB transactions across 19 African countries, Standard Bank said.
The new clearing status will allow businesses to settle trade more directly with China while improving access to China’s capital markets and liquidity infrastructure. It is also expected to make cross border trade and investment transactions faster and more efficient.
Richard de Roos, Head of Operations for Corporate and Investment Banking at Standard Bank, said the approval strengthens the bank’s ability to support growing trade between Africa and China. He added that demand for yuan based transactions is expected to increase as commercial ties deepen.
China remains Africa’s largest export market, while trade between both sides rose nearly 18% last year, according to Chinese customs data. Beijing also removed tariffs on imports from 53 African countries on May 1, further supporting trade flows.
Standard Bank became the first African bank to join China’s Cross Border Interbank Payment System (CIPS) in November 2025, processing about $500 million in transactions within its first four months, largely driven by physical trade.
According to Standard Bank’s Africa Trade Barometer, Asian countries are now the preferred trading partners for 35% of businesses across 10 African markets, up from 24% in 2024, with China identified as the leading source of business inputs by 67% of respondents.
