Some regard new technology as a useful tool in business strategy. Others see it as a means of cutting costs. Yet there is no doubt that cutting-edge technological innovation is at the heart of Africa’s banking boom, bringing financial services to the unbanked and driving ever-stiffer competition in markets across the continent. From card technology, to mobile banking and on to management software, new applications and services can widen a bank’s customer base, offer an improved service, provide new products and reduce costs.

It is not merely a case of Africa following the same pattern of technological development as the rest of the world.

As in the mobile telecoms sector, there can be advantages in missing out stages of development and leapfrogging technologies. William Mzimba, the chief executive of global consultancy Accenture in South Africa and Botswana, says: “Having been a slow adopter of technology, the continent is now at a huge advantage because it is not burdened

by legacy systems. It is able to leapfrog development by using cutting edge technologies in areas such as mobile phones for banking.”