Building a Resilient and Intelligent African Trade Ecosystem

Trade in Africa is dynamic and deeply nuanced, characterised by regulatory fragmentation and infrastructure gaps. Heightened fraud risk is part of the landscape, which is why Absa’s digitisation strategy is not just about speed, but also about building digital controls that help the bank manage risk more intelligently, proactively and consistently.

This strategy is also anchored in understanding and improving the client experience at every step of the trade lifecycle. From document submission to transaction execution and compliance screening, our goal is to remove friction, reduce turnaround times, and deliver confidence, especially in complex, high-volume environments.

This digitisation strategy embeds automation, control and visibility into the core of our operating model. We have implemented integrated digital platforms that streamline workflows, reduce manual intervention, and enhance data quality across the transaction lifecycle. As a result, clients benefit from faster, more predictable processing, with fewer delays caused by manual touchpoints or data quality issues.  By digitising traditionally manual processes, we have enhanced risk governance, improved processing efficiency and created scalable solutions that adapt to varying market conditions across Africa. This has enabled us to not only meet regulatory expectations, but also elevate the client experience through faster, more secure and insight-driven trade execution.

Absa’s digitisation journey in Trade and Working Capital has been deliberate, bold and grounded in a clear purpose to transform the way we enable trade across Africa. We have focused not just on technology upgrades, but also on building platforms that deliver measurable value to clients, teams, and the broader trade ecosystem.

Trade Management Online (TMO) has been the cornerstone of this journey. Live across all Absa Regional Office (ARO) markets, it provides clients with a single digital entry point to manage transactions, access documents and gain real-time visibility into their trade flows. Behind the scenes, we have embedded Trade Management integrated automated workflows and intelligent routing, ensuring operational speed and consistency. For the client, this means reduced turnaround times, fewer errors, and more time to focus on their core business rather than administrative follow-up. What used to require multiple calls and follow-ups is now available on demand, empowering clients to manage their business with speed and confidence.

A key accelerator in this transformation has been our implementation of Optical Character Recognition (OCR). By digitising and extracting data from trade documents, we have reduced manual inputs, improved accuracy and reduced processing times, which is a critical advantage in high-volume environments. For clients, this means less back-and-forth, fewer rejected documents, and a more seamless interaction with our teams. The improved data quality also enhances our ability to pre-empt risk, ensuring client transactions proceed smoothly and securely.

Importantly, we have integrated OCR directly into our core systems, enabling straight-through processing for certain activities and improved risk management. The rollout of OCR across our trade operations regionally has had a profound impact on both efficiency and our people. Where we once relied on manual data entry and document checks, we now have a system that intelligently reads, extracts and validates trade documentation with high accuracy. Processing speeds have improved by over 60%, while error rates and rework have materially declined. Just as important, the quality of data feeding into our risk and compliance systems has improved, providing cleaner insights.

What has been truly remarkable is the colleague experience, which is key to Absa’s transformation journey. Manual tasks are now executed by technology, allowing our operations colleagues to step into higher-value roles managing exceptions, proactive client engagement and driving continuous improvement. This is a shift from ‘doing’ to ‘thinking’, which has elevated the role of operations within the trade value chain and enables the client to gain access to more responsive and insightful support throughout their trade journey.

Further driving this shift is Iogate, our internally built Application Programming Interface (API) integration layer, which allows us to seamlessly connect internal platforms, and third-party solutions. This has unlocked real-time data exchange, enhanced automation and enabled us to meet clients where they operate.

Through Iogate, we are looking to create seamless links between client systems (like Enterprise Resource Panners (ERPs)), our trade platforms, downstream processing systems and external partnerships with revenue-generating activities. Our clients can now submit instructions, track activity and receive confirmations without leaving their environment, enabling a more frictionless and real-time experience, which accelerates execution, and creates a more intuitive client experience.

In today’s environment, where regulatory scrutiny is heightened and trade-based financial crime is growing more sophisticated, we have taken a proactive stance by investing in AI-enabled Trade-based Money Laundering (TBML) detection and compliance automation. Our partnership with a leading global compliance technology provider has enabled us to screen trade transactions at scale, and in real-time. The system uses Artificial Intelligence (AI) to detect anomalies in trade flows, vessel and container screening, pricing patterns, type of goods and geographic linkages, which enable potential risks that would be near-impossible to identify manually.

Being a leading global compliance technology provider has enabled us to screen trade transactions at scale and in real-time. This capability enhances the integrity of the client journey by providing peace of mind, ensuring their transactions are secure, compliant, and monitored with cutting-edge tools.

Together, these innovations are delivering more than just efficiency. They are enabling a faster, more transparent, and more resilient trade experience, positioning Absa as a trusted, forward-thinking trade partner in markets and for clients that are increasingly digital and demanding.

Looking ahead, we are exploring further opportunities in AI-led orchestration, fintech collaborations and cross-bank ecosystem connectivity to advance the interoperability of African trade. The future is connected, and we are building the infrastructure now to ensure we are ready. Absa’s focus over the next horizon is on deepening automation, embedding real-time data analytics and evolving our operating model to be both lean and intelligent. We are investing in tools that give our teams end-to-end visibility of the trade transaction lifecycle, highlight exceptions proactively, and support faster, data-informed decisions. With end-to-end transaction visibility, predictive insights, and ESG-linked trade solutions, we aim to walk alongside our clients as they navigate the growing intra-Africa trade landscape.

At Absa, the client journey is not a by-product of digitisation, it is the reason for it. By building scalable, intelligent, and secure digital infrastructure, we are ensuring that every client interaction adds value, strengthens trust, and accelerates Africa’s trade and economic growth.