Getting credit: Credit bureau coverage in South Africa
South Africa: Getting credit: Credit bureau coverage was 66.5% in 2019. ▲ Rising
Getting credit: Credit bureau coverage in South Africa, 2004–2019
Source: World Bank. Measured in % of adults.
Analysis
The most recent figure for getting credit: credit bureau coverage in South Africa is 66.5%, measured in 2019.
The figure is down 1.2% on the previous year and up 21.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, getting credit: credit bureau coverage in South Africa peaked at 67.3% in 2018 and was at its lowest, 52.0%, in 2011.
South Africa ranks 43rd of 191 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 16 years of available data.
Getting credit: Credit bureau coverage in South Africa, year by year
| Year | % of adults | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | 63.6% | — |
| 2005 | 63.4% | -0.3% |
| 2006 | 53.0% | -16.4% |
| 2007 | 52.1% | -1.7% |
| 2008 | 64.8% | +24.4% |
| 2009 | 54.7% | -15.6% |
| 2010 | 54.9% | +0.4% |
| 2011 | 52.0% | -5.3% |
| 2012 | 54.0% | +3.8% |
| 2013 | 55.6% | +3.0% |
| 2014 | 55.4% | -0.4% |
| 2015 | 62.0% | +11.9% |
| 2016 | 63.7% | +2.7% |
| 2017 | 64.4% | +1.1% |
| 2018 | 67.3% | +4.5% |
| 2019 | 66.5% | -1.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 58.6% | 52.1% | 64.8% | 6 |
| 2010s | 59.6% | 52.0% | 67.3% | 10 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More private sector data for South Africa
- Merchandise trade 57.2% (2025)
- Food imports 7.2% (2025)
- Manufactures imports 62.1% (2025)
- Merchandise imports 128.08 billion current US$ (2025)
- Food exports 12.8% (2025)
- Manufactures exports 38.3% (2025)
- Merchandise exports 116.40 billion current US$ (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per capita 1,798 current US$ per person (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.2725 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), annual growth rate 5.74 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is getting credit: credit bureau coverage in South Africa?
- Getting credit: credit bureau coverage in South Africa was 66.5% in 2019, according to the World Bank.
- What is the highest getting credit: credit bureau coverage recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 67.3% in 2018.
- What is the lowest getting credit: credit bureau coverage recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 52.0% in 2011.
- How does South Africa rank for getting credit: credit bureau coverage?
- South Africa ranks 43rd out of 191 countries with data for 2019.
- Is getting credit: credit bureau coverage rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 21.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from the World Bank, published as part of Getting credit: Credit bureau coverage (% of adults). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 16 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
The credit bureau coverage reports the number of individuals and firms listed in a credit bureau’s database as of January 1 with information on their borrowing history from the past five years, and the number of individuals and firms that have had no borrowing history in the past five years but for which a lender requested a credit report from the bureau in the previous calendar year. The number is expressed as a percentage of the adult population.