Pay with PayShap Using Peanut — Coming Soon
Peanut is adding PayShap support. Soon you'll send rand instantly to anyone in South Africa from your digital dollar balance.
Peanut is adding PayShap support. Soon you'll be able to send money to anyone in South Africa directly from your Peanut balance — converting digital dollars to South African rand and delivering them within seconds. PayShap is South Africa's real-time, low-cost payment system, backed by the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) and operated through BankservAfrica. Launched in 2023, PayShap uses proxy identifiers — phone numbers, email addresses, or South African ID numbers — to enable instant transfers without requiring full bank details. Once the integration goes live, Peanut will connect you to South Africa's newest payment infrastructure.
South Africa has a significant diaspora, particularly in the UK (around 500,000 people), Australia, and the US. The UK-South Africa corridor is one of Africa's most active for person-to-person transfers. Traditional remittance channels on this corridor charge fees of 1-5% and can take 1-3 days. Peanut will offer instant delivery via PayShap at competitive rates.
What Is PayShap?
PayShap is South Africa's first real-time low-cost payment system, launched in 2023 as part of BankservAfrica's Rapid Payments Programme (RPP). It is a South African Reserve Bank (SARB) initiative designed to promote financial inclusion by making instant transfers accessible and affordable.
The key innovation is the ShapID — a proxy identifier that lets you pay using a phone number, email address, or South African ID number instead of full bank account details. This makes payments simple and reduces errors. The name "PayShap" comes from "shap-shap," South African slang for "quickly."
PayShap is designed for low-value, high-volume payments with transaction fees capped at a few rand — much cheaper than traditional EFT or Real-Time Clearing (RTC) transfers. It settles in real time, 24/7. Participating banks include Absa, FNB, Nedbank, Standard Bank, and Capitec, with more institutions joining over time.
Currently, PayShap focuses on account-to-account transfers — individual and small business payments. Merchant POS and QR payments are not yet part of the system, but the infrastructure is built for future expansion.
Where It Works
PayShap is available at major South African banks:
- Absa — one of South Africa's big four banks
- FNB (First National Bank) — part of the FirstRand Group
- Nedbank — major commercial bank
- Standard Bank — Africa's largest bank by assets
- Capitec — the fastest-growing retail bank in South Africa
- Smaller banks and fintechs — additional institutions are joining
PayShap currently supports individual and small business account-to-account transfers. It works across all of South Africa — Johannesburg, Cape Town, Durban, Pretoria, Port Elizabeth, and nationwide through participating banks.
How It Will Work
- 1
Open Peanut and select Send
You'll open the Peanut app and choose to send money via PayShap to a South African bank account.
- 2
Enter the recipient's ShapID
Provide the recipient's phone number, email address, or South African ID number. PayShap uses these proxy identifiers — no need to ask for full bank details.
- 3
Review the transfer
You'll see the ZAR amount, the digital dollar equivalent, and the exchange rate. The rate will lock when you confirm.
- 4
Confirm and send
Tap to confirm. The recipient will receive rand in their bank account within seconds — 24/7, including weekends.
The exact payment flow will be confirmed closer to launch. The steps above reflect the general PayShap experience combined with Peanut's existing payment model.
What You'll Need
When PayShap support goes live, you'll need:
- A Peanut account with identity verification. Verify with your passport or national ID card from any country — under 2 minutes for most users. Your documents are handled securely and Peanut never sees or stores them.
- A funded digital dollar balance. Deposit from any exchange or wallet, or via bank transfer (SEPA from Europe, ACH or wire from the US). All deposits are free.
- The recipient's ShapID. Phone number, email address, or South African ID number linked to their PayShap-enabled bank account.
- No South African bank account or local ID on your end. You won't need a South African ID, local bank account, or local phone number to send money to South Africa through Peanut.
Specific requirements and transaction limits will be confirmed at launch.
Fees & Exchange Rate
Peanut charges no fees on payments. When PayShap support goes live, you'll convert digital dollars to South African rand at a competitive market exchange rate with no transaction fee and no hidden charges.
The South African rand is a freely floating currency with moderate volatility, influenced by commodity prices, global risk appetite, and domestic developments. Peanut's rate will lock at the moment you confirm — no slippage, no post-transaction adjustments. This gives you certainty on the exact amount the recipient will receive.
Traditional remittance services on the UK-South Africa corridor charge 1-5% in fees with delivery times of 1-3 days. Peanut will offer instant delivery with no fees. Detailed rate comparisons will be published closer to launch.
