What Is a Payment?
A payment is the transfer of value from one party to another, usually in exchange for goods, services or the settlement of a debt. In South Africa, most non-cash payments move rand between bank accounts through the national payment system, using rails such as EFT, real-time clearing (RTC), PayShap, DebiCheck and the card networks.
Behind every payment there are always at least two parties: the payer, whose account is debited, and the payee (often a business), whose account is credited. Between them sit banks, clearing houses and payment providers such as Kwik that move the instruction and the money.
What actually moves when you make a payment?
When you pay electronically, no physical money changes hands. Instead, two things happen:
- A payment instruction travels between the banks, telling them which account to debit and which to credit.
- Settlement happens between the banks themselves, typically through accounts held at the South African Reserve Bank (SARB).
The payer's bank reduces the payer's balance, the payee's bank increases the payee's balance, and the banks square up with each other in the background. How quickly each step happens depends on the payment rail. See What Is the Payment Lifecycle? for the full journey.
What is the difference between push and pull payments?
Every electronic payment is either pushed by the payer or pulled by the payee.
| Type | Who initiates it | South African examples |
|---|---|---|
| Push payment | The payer instructs their own bank to send money | EFT credit, real-time clearing, PayShap |
| Pull payment | The payee (or their provider) instructs the payer's bank to release money | Debit orders, DebiCheck, card payments |
The distinction matters for risk and authority:
- Push payments are authorised at the moment the payer sends them, so they rarely bounce, but the payer controls the timing.
- Pull payments rely on prior authority, such as a debit order mandate or a card authorisation. The payee controls the timing, which makes pull payments ideal for recurring collections, but they can fail or be disputed if the authority or funds are missing.
What types of payments do South African businesses use?
Common payment types include:
- Once-off payments — a single purchase, invoice payment or payment link.
- Recurring collections — debit orders and DebiCheck mandates that collect subscriptions, premiums or instalments on an agreed schedule.
- Card payments — in-person or online payments using debit, credit or prepaid cards.
- Payouts — money a business pushes out to suppliers, staff or customers, usually by EFT or PayShap.
Why does a payment take time?
A payment can look instant to the customer while the money is still moving between banks. Authorisation, clearing and settlement are separate steps, and each rail treats them differently: PayShap clears in near real time, while a standard EFT is processed in batches and may only reflect on the next banking day. Cut-off times, weekends and South African public holidays also affect when funds land — see Cut-Off Times and Value Dates.
Because "paid" can mean different things at different stages, businesses track payments using statuses and references, explained in Payment Statuses and References.
Related topics
How Payments Work
Understand the fundamentals of payments, from the payment lifecycle and participants to clearing, settlement, cut-off times, fees and the South African national payment system.
Payment Lifecycle
Follow a payment from initiation to final settlement, including the stages, statuses and timeframes that apply to cards, debit orders, EFT and PayShap.