Introducing Transfers in South Africa

Paystack already helps businesses in South Africa accept payments via cards, EFT, SnapScan, and Masterpass. And starting today, you can now transfer money with Paystack to any South African bank account!

Why send money transfers with Paystack?

We’ve worked closely with several businesses in South Africa to understand their money transfer needs, and provide a solution that’s simple, reliable, and customisable to fit a variety of business models.

We found that businesses typically switch back and forth between Paystack (where they collect online payments) and a separate platform to send money, which is time-consuming and introduces errors. Using transfers on Paystack saves time because you can send money from the same platform where you accept payments.

We also understand that every business is unique, so we made it easy to build custom money transfer experiences via API. This means that no matter how particular or complex your business needs are, you can easily build a solution that gives you fine-grained control over how you send money.

Additionally, Paystack Transfers helps you reduce errors and save time by sending money to multiple bank accounts at once. Instead of sending different sums to different recipients one at a time, you simply upload a spreadsheet of your recipients’ bank details and click Send. It’s very straightforward.

We also made it easy to validate your customers’ bank accounts before sending them money. This reduces the chance of sending money to the wrong recipients. Another reason to validate the identity of the owner of a bank account is that fraudsters sometimes find a way to impersonate your recipients, swapping out the bank account details for their own. Our Validate Account service allows you to confirm the recipient, and this protects you from sending money to bad actors. Learn more about our Validate Account service here.

Finally, you can also use our granular user permissions system to control exactly who can send money out from your Paystack account. This means that while multiple members of your team can have access to your Paystack account to support their work, only you and key members of your team can send money out from your account.

How are businesses using Paystack Transfers?

There are several ways businesses use Paystack Transfers. Here are a few of them:

• Businesses that deal with suppliers use Paystack Transfers to quickly and painlessly pay them right from the Paystack Dashboard.
• Tech startups use the Transfers API to build beautiful, seamless experiences for their customers. Lending or savings fintechs, for example, are able to build elegant payout flows that send money to customers quickly, and with minimal manual input.
• Marketplaces can be difficult businesses to run because as the operator, you’re collecting payments on behalf of the sellers on your platform. Several marketplace operators rely on Paystack to manage payment collections and the automated money transfer to the sellers, using Paystack Transfers via API.

There are several other ways to use Paystack Transfers. And no matter the complexity or flavour of your business needs, you’ll find that our Transfers product supports it.

How to use Paystack Transfers

To use the Transfers feature, you need a Paystack Registered Business. You also need to top up your Paystack Balance before sending out the money.

• This guide shows you how to top up your Paystack Balance and transfer money from your Paystack Dashboard →
• If you’d like to send bulk money transfers from the Dashboard, this guide shows you how in detail →
• To learn how to send money with Paystack via the API, check out our developer documentation on Transfers →
• Finally, find out how to use the Account Validation API to validate the identity of the owner of your recipients’ bank accounts before sending them money.

Common Questions

How much does it cost to send money with Paystack?
Paystack charges a small fee per transfer recipient. Check out our current pricing here →

Is there a minimum and maximum amount that can be sent with Paystack?
The minimum amount you can transfer at a time is ZAR 1, and the maximum amount is ZAR 1,000,000.

How do I top up my balance so I can transfer money?
South Africa-based businesses can only top up their balance using the EFT channel. There is also a 1.0% top-up fee per transaction For South Africa-based businesses.

Are there permissions in place to control who can do a money transfer on my behalf?
Yes. By default, only admin users can authorise a money transfer from your Paystack Dashboard or via API. But you can also extend this permission to other members of your team when it makes sense.

Is the Transfers product available outside South Africa?
Yes, transfers are also available to all Paystack merchants, including Nigeria and Ghana.

Can merchants in South Africa send money to non-South African bank accounts?
No, merchants in South Africa can only send money to South African bank accounts for now.

Can merchants in South Africa send money to more than one bank account at a time?
Yes, using our bulk transfers feature, you can add all the recipient bank accounts and corresponding amounts to a spreadsheet, upload it, and click Send.

Can both Starter and Registered businesses use Paystack Transfers?
Only Registered Businesses can use the Transfers feature. If you have a Starter Business, you can upgrade to a Registered Business account here →