Ghana records nearly 20% traffic in SWIFT payments as at March 2013
Financial payments in Ghana using the SWIFT platform recorded nearly 20% traffic in 12 months to March 2013.
According to SWIFT, its message businesses in Ghana’s securities markets rose by more than 56% during the period.
“…in Ghana, payment traffic rose by almost 20% and securities by more than 56%,” SWIFT said in a figures report at its 2013 African Regional Conference (ARC) in Gaborone, Botswana on May 21, 2013.
SWIFT, which is a financial messaging provider for more than 10,000 banks, securities institutions and corporate customers in 212 countries and territories, announced that its business in Africa has outperformed the total growth of the business globally by more than 16%, highlighting the vitality of the region.
Growth was particularly marked in the securities markets, where Africa volumes outpaced total SWIFT securities traffic by more than 42%, it said in a statement.
According to SWIFT, total growth for Africa’s message traffic was 11.5%.
“Africa is one of the most dynamic and fast growing regions in the world today and in many aspects is leading the world in regional development projects that will help to boost intra-Africa trade and drive economic growth even further,” said Hugo Smit, Head of Africa South, SWIFT.
Looking at SWIFT traffic at a country level, the report said many sub-Saharan countries have experienced a startling pace of growth over the last 12 months.
“For the securities volumes, some figures partly reflect that Africa’s capital markets are relatively young, so volume growth is coming from a low base,” it added.
SWIFT says, in Nigeria, for example, payments traffic grew by almost 32% and securities traffic by more than 50%.
In East Africa, SWIFT indicated that the region’s message traffic has also risen over the same period, with Uganda’s payments up by more than 34% and securities by 55% adding that Tanzania’s securities traffic has risen by a staggering 115%.
Despite a slow growth rate in South Africa, SWIFT said it however outstripped it’s global growth. Payments traffic rose by almost 13% and securities by more than 13%, it says.
By Ekow Quandzie