South Africans leaned heavily into digital channels this Black Friday and Cyber Monday, with data from Discovery Bank and PayInc pointing to strong transaction volumes, and a marked shift towards virtual payments and disciplined, value-driven shopping behaviour.
PayInc reported brisk online activity across both shopping days, saying its systems “successfully handled” the surge with 100% uptime.
PayInc (formerly BankservAfrica) is South Africa’s core payment infrastructure, the largest automated clearing house in Africa, responsible for connecting the country’s payment systems, managing electronic funds transfers (EFTs), instant payments (such as PayShap), and cash management.
According to Solly Bellingan, the head of marketing at PayInc, the firm recorded an average of 934 transactions per minute on Black Friday and 700 per minute on Cyber Monday, reflecting the scale of demand as consumers searched for top deals.
Bellingan said Black Friday shoppers were highly strategic, with online activity peaking between midnight and 2am, again mid-morning, and reaching its busiest hour between 10am and 11am. Another surge followed late into the evening. “Shoppers tracked Black Friday specials closely, clicking away during the two most critical periods – the early hours to snap up the first deals, and the evening to secure the final offers of the day,” he said.
Some consumers went big. PayInc reported one online transaction of R3 million in the travel and entertainment category, while in-store reporting captured 202 swipes from a single card worth nearly R500 000 at a travel agency and tour operator. The highest in-store spend in that category reached nearly R720 000. Most in-store card purchases occurred at grocery stores, service stations, and fast-food outlets.
Cyber Monday also proved more active than last year, with an average spend of R740 and a peak hour between 9am and 10am. Travel and entertainment once again topped the spending categories, with the highest single transaction hitting R1m.
Discovery Bank’s Black Friday SpendTrend analysis reinforces the picture of a rapid acceleration towards digital payments. The bank reported that “nearly two-thirds of in-store card transactions” among its clients were made via tap-to-pay, while a third of online spend used virtual cards.
Chief executive Hylton Kallner said Black Friday offers a clear read on economic health. “Our SpendTrend dashboard not only tracks the pulse of South African shoppers in real time, but also highlights how consumers are favouring digital payments, accessing international marketplaces, and tapping into rewards for more value.”
This year’s event played out against easing inflation and recent interest rate cuts, with the repo rate now at 6.75% and the prime lending rate at 10.25%. According to Discovery Bank, the softer rate environment is helping to stabilise household finances. Within this context, the bank observed higher overall spend and more transactions, but with smaller average baskets, signalling cautious but recovering consumer activity.
Online spend accounted for 45% of total Black Friday card spend among Discovery Bank clients. Online card transactions were also 45% higher than on a typical last-Friday-of-the-month. Although in-store volumes grew strongly, online spend is rising faster, reflecting the wider adoption of digital commerce. Discovery Bank said the trend mirrors broader shifts in shopper behaviour, including the growing popularity of international e-commerce platforms such as Shein and Temu.
The bank’s analysis also shows consumers breaking purchases into several smaller transactions, using price comparison tools and digital payment options to maximise value. Younger shoppers directed more spend towards clothing, while older clients focused on groceries, home goods, and recreation. Everyday and home-focused spending were among the top three categories overall.
Black Friday has increasingly become a 24-hour retail event, Discovery Bank noted. Only 54% of online spend occurred during traditional trading hours, with a significant share taking place before stores opened and after closing time. In-store activity remained anchored to the typical payday-weekend pattern, with volumes about 20% higher than a normal month-end Friday.
Both sets of data illustrate the same underlying theme: South Africans are buying more frequently but spending carefully, using digital tools to stretch their budgets and track down the sharpest prices. As Bellingan observed, “With digital shopping in the spotlight, the Black Friday and Cyber Monday shopping shows a clear shift towards online for seeking out the biggest deals.”
With payment innovation expanding – from virtual cards to tap-to-pay and instant payment options such as PayShap Request – retailers can expect continued growth in digital commerce as consumers integrate these tools into their everyday shopping.
