External loans and deposits of reporting banks vis-à-vis all sectors in South Africa
South Africa: External loans and deposits of reporting banks vis-à-vis all sectors was 16.0% in 2021. ▲ Rising
External loans and deposits of reporting banks vis-à-vis all sectors in South Africa, 1995–2021
Source: Bank for International Settlements (BIS). Measured in % of domestic bank deposits.
Analysis
In 2021, external loans and deposits of reporting banks vis-à-vis all sectors in South Africa stood at 16.0%.
The figure is down 28.8% on the previous year and up 13.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, external loans and deposits of reporting banks vis-à-vis all sectors in South Africa peaked at 35.4% in 2003 and was at its lowest, 8.9%, in 1995.
South Africa ranks 114th of 181 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 27 years of available data.
External loans and deposits of reporting banks vis-à-vis all sectors in South Africa, year by year
| Year | % of domestic bank deposits | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 8.9% | — |
| 1996 | 9.4% | +5.0% |
| 1997 | 11.8% | +25.8% |
| 1998 | 12.3% | +4.5% |
| 1999 | 14.8% | +20.1% |
| 2000 | 15.7% | +6.0% |
| 2001 | 24.9% | +58.6% |
| 2002 | 35.3% | +41.5% |
| 2003 | 35.4% | +0.3% |
| 2004 | 34.6% | -2.2% |
| 2005 | 29.2% | -15.7% |
| 2006 | 31.1% | +6.7% |
| 2007 | 32.3% | +3.9% |
| 2008 | 24.7% | -23.6% |
| 2009 | 23.4% | -5.4% |
| 2010 | 20.7% | -11.5% |
| 2011 | 14.1% | -31.7% |
| 2012 | 15.5% | +9.5% |
| 2013 | 20.1% | +29.8% |
| 2014 | 20.2% | +0.7% |
| 2015 | 20.5% | +1.3% |
| 2016 | 24.5% | +19.6% |
| 2017 | 21.2% | -13.3% |
| 2018 | 16.0% | -24.7% |
| 2019 | 17.5% | +9.6% |
| 2020 | 22.5% | +28.4% |
| 2021 | 16.0% | -28.8% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 16.0% is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 19.1%, 84% of the median. (54 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 16.0% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 27.1%, 59% of the median. (46 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 11.5% | 8.9% | 14.8% | 5 |
| 2000s | 28.7% | 15.7% | 35.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 19.0% | 14.1% | 24.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 19.3% | 16.0% | 22.5% | 2 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More financial sector data for South Africa
- Net domestic credit (current LCU), per capita 95,301 current LCU per person (2025)
- Net domestic credit (current LCU), per unit of GDP 14.44 current LCU per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Net domestic credit (current LCU), annual growth rate 11.21 % change on previous year (2025)
- Gold reserves at 35 SDRs per ounce 141.22 million SDR (2025)
- Gold reserves at market value 12.87 billion SDR (2025)
- Reserves excluding gold, foreign exchange 37.46 billion SDR (2025)
- Reserves excluding gold 42.64 billion SDR (2025)
- Total reserves (gold at market value) 55.51 billion SDR (2025)
- Total reserves (gold at national valuation) 55.42 billion SDR (2025)
- Total reserves (gold at national valuation) (SDR), per capita 855.88 SDR per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is external loans and deposits of reporting banks vis-à-vis all sectors in South Africa?
- External loans and deposits of reporting banks vis-à-vis all sectors in South Africa was 16.0% in 2021, according to Bank for International Settlements (BIS).
- What is the highest external loans and deposits of reporting banks vis-à-vis all sectors recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 35.4% in 2003.
- What is the lowest external loans and deposits of reporting banks vis-à-vis all sectors recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 8.9% in 1995.
- How does South Africa rank for external loans and deposits of reporting banks vis-à-vis all sectors?
- South Africa ranks 114th out of 181 countries with data for 2021.
- Is external loans and deposits of reporting banks vis-à-vis all sectors rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 13.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from Bank for International Settlements (BIS), published as part of External loans and deposits of reporting banks vis-à-vis all sectors (% of domestic bank deposits). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Data is from BIS Statistical Appendix Table 7A: External loans and deposits of reporting banks vis-à-vis all sectors; bank deposits from IFS (IFS lines 24 and 25). End of year data (i.e. December data) are used.