Bank return on equity (%, before tax) in South Africa
South Africa: Bank return on equity (%, before tax) was 17.6% in 2021. ▼ Falling
Bank return on equity in South Africa, 2000–2021
Source: Bankscope, Bureau van Dijk (BvD). Measured in %, before tax.
Analysis
In 2021, bank return on equity in South Africa stood at 17.6%.
That represents a change of up 178.9% on the previous year and down 17.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, bank return on equity in South Africa peaked at 37.7% in 2006 and was at its lowest, 6.3%, in 2020.
That places South Africa 45th out of 168 countries with data for 2021, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 19 years of available data.
Bank return on equity (%, before tax) in South Africa, year by year
| Year | %, before tax | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 11.6% | — |
| 2001 | 8.8% | -24.8% |
| 2005 | 34.0% | +288.3% |
| 2006 | 37.7% | +11.1% |
| 2007 | 34.7% | -8.0% |
| 2008 | 25.7% | -26.1% |
| 2009 | 18.5% | -28.1% |
| 2010 | 19.3% | +4.7% |
| 2011 | 21.3% | +10.0% |
| 2012 | 21.1% | -0.9% |
| 2013 | 16.0% | -24.3% |
| 2014 | 19.1% | +19.8% |
| 2015 | 20.8% | +8.7% |
| 2016 | 22.3% | +7.4% |
| 2017 | 21.6% | -3.1% |
| 2018 | 18.7% | -13.6% |
| 2019 | 19.7% | +5.5% |
| 2020 | 6.3% | -68.0% |
| 2021 | 17.6% | +178.9% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 17.6% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 12.3%, 1.4× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 17.6% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 20.8%, 84% of the median. (39 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Bank return on equity (%, before tax) in South Africa changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | +288.3% | 8.8% | 34.0% |
| 2021 | +178.9% | 6.3% | 17.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 24.4% | 8.8% | 37.7% | 7 |
| 2010s | 20.0% | 16.0% | 22.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 11.9% | 6.3% | 17.6% | 2 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More financial sector data for South Africa
- Reserve position in the IMF, US dollar, annual growth rate 5.08 % change on previous year (2025)
- Reserve position in the IMF, US dollar, per unit of GDP 0.0021 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Reserve position in the IMF, US dollar, per capita 13.81 units per person (2025)
- Reserve position in the IMF, SDR, annual growth rate 0.0607 % change on previous year (2025)
- Reserve position in the IMF, SDR, per unit of GDP 0.0015 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Reserve position in the IMF, SDR, per capita 10.08 units per person (2025)
- Reserve tranche position, US dollar, annual growth rate 5.08 % change on previous year (2025)
- Reserve tranche position, US dollar, per unit of GDP 0.0021 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Reserve tranche position, US dollar, per capita 13.81 units per person (2025)
- Reserve tranche position, SDR, annual growth rate 0.0607 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is bank return on equity in South Africa?
- Bank return on equity in South Africa was 17.6% in 2021, according to Bankscope, Bureau van Dijk (BvD).
- What is the highest bank return on equity recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 37.7% in 2006.
- What is the lowest bank return on equity recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 6.3% in 2020.
- How does South Africa rank for bank return on equity?
- South Africa ranks 45th out of 168 countries with data for 2021.
- Is bank return on equity rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 17.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from Bankscope, Bureau van Dijk (BvD), published as part of Bank return on equity (%, before tax). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 19 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Raw data are from Bankscope. Data10270[t] / ((data2055[t] + data2055[t-1])/2). Numerator and denominator are first aggregated on the country level before division. Note that banks used in the calculation might differ between indicators. Calculated from underlying bank-by-bank unconsolidated data from Bankscope.