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Cost of moneySouth Africa

Lending rate in South Africa

What do banks charge for credit there?

South Africa's lending rate is 10.69 % — #40 of 67 countries on the atlas (lower is better). Period 2025.

10.69%

Checked 22 Sept 2026Period 2025

Source: IMF International Financial Statistics

Lending rate in South Africa over time

22.33 %13.92 %5.50 %22.33 % · 19845.50 % · 19631957: 6.00 %1958: 6.29 %1959: 6.00 %1960: 6.21 %1961: 6.83 %1962: 6.21 %1963: 5.50 %1964: 5.79 %1965: 6.92 %1966: 7.50 %1967: 8.25 %1968: 8.33 %1969: 8.00 %1970: 8.17 %1971: 8.83 %1972: 8.79 %1973: 8.00 %1974: 10.17 %1975: 11.79 %1976: 12.25 %1977: 12.50 %1978: 12.13 %1979: 10.00 %1980: 9.50 %1981: 14.00 %1982: 19.33 %1983: 16.67 %1984: 22.33 %1985: 21.50 %1986: 14.33 %1987: 12.50 %1988: 15.33 %1989: 19.83 %1990: 21.00 %1991: 20.31 %1992: 18.91 %1993: 16.16 %1994: 15.58 %1995: 17.90 %1996: 19.52 %1997: 20.00 %1998: 21.79 %1999: 18.00 %2000: 14.50 %2001: 13.77 %2002: 15.75 %2003: 14.96 %2004: 11.29 %2005: 10.63 %2006: 11.17 %2007: 13.17 %2008: 15.13 %2009: 11.71 %2010: 9.83 %2011: 9.00 %2012: 8.75 %2013: 8.50 %2014: 9.13 %2015: 9.42 %2016: 10.46 %2017: 10.38 %2018: 10.08 %2019: 10.13 %2020: 7.71 %2021: 7.04 %2022: 8.79 %2023: 11.50 %2024: 11.63 %2025: 10.69 %19571991202510.69 %
69 official observations, 1957 → 2025. Every point is a published value — never interpolated.
Rank
#40 of 67
lower is better
Ranked behind
40 %
27 of 67 countries
Latest move
▼ 0.94 pp
since 2024
Below its peak
11.64 pp
peak 22.33 % in 1984
Full series
▲ 4.69 pp
since 1957

In Africa: #4 of 14vs median 8.79 %: +1.90 pp (worse)

Among 67 countries

10 of 67 countries between 2.96 % and 4.75 %9 of 67 countries between 4.75 % and 6.55 %9 of 67 countries between 6.55 % and 8.34 %10 of 67 countries between 8.34 % and 10.14 %4 of 67 countries between 10.14 % and 11.93 %3 of 67 countries between 11.93 % and 13.73 %5 of 67 countries between 13.73 % and 15.52 %5 of 67 countries between 15.52 % and 17.31 %3 of 67 countries between 17.31 % and 19.11 %3 of 67 countries between 19.11 % and 20.90 %1 of 67 countries between 22.70 % and 24.49 %1 of 67 countries between 37.05 % and 38.84 %4 of 67 countries between 44.23 % and 46.02 %median 8.79 %South Africa: ahead of 40 % of the 67 countries with a published lending rateSouth Africa 10.69 %2.96 %46.02 %
Half of all 67 countries sit between 5.88 % and 15.34 %. South Africa is ahead of 40 % of them. Axis trimmed to the 2nd–98th percentile; 3 values beyond it sit in the end bars.

The neighbourhood

#CountryLending ratevs South Africa
38 Uruguay10.06 %−0.63 pp
39 Bolivia10.19 %−0.50 pp
40 South Africa10.69 %—
41 Belarus10.95 %+0.26 pp
42 Namibia10.96 %+0.27 pp

Bank lending rate, IMF-harmonised — the price of credit, ~150 economies.

How to read this figure

The IMF-harmonised bank lending rate — what banks charge their customers for credit, averaged nationally. Harmonisation is what makes ~150 economies comparable; the trade-off is that the underlying loan mix (business vs consumer, maturities) differs by country, so treat close values as similar, not identical.

Next, about South Africa

Deposit rateInflation rate
Lending rate, all countries ranked →Compare South Africa with another country →Everything about South Africa →
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