Lending software for South Africa

NCA affordability rules and DebiCheck mandates set a high bar that South African lending software has to meet from day one. lendhero arrives with TransUnion, DHA (Home Affairs) and PayShap already connected, so your team configures products instead of plumbing.

See the local stack
  • ZAR (R)
  • English, Afrikaans, isiZulu
  • 19 local connectors
  • 1–2 weeks to launch

Hi, Thandi

ApprovedR 10 000

805

Credit score

On-time payments

Monthly paymentR 983

Market profile

South Africa at a glance

What lendhero is set up for in South Africa before your team logs in.

Currency

ZAR (R)

Languages

English, Afrikaans, isiZulu

Supervisor

National Credit Regulator

Credit data

TransUnion, Experian, XDS

Payout rails

PayShap, EFT, Ozow

Data protection

POPIA

19
local connectors wired in before kickoff
ZAR
for pricing, payouts and repayments
1–2
weeks from kickoff to the first loan
3
interface languages: English, Afrikaans, isiZulu

Working with borrowers in South Africa

Tools for every borrower conversation

Borrowers in South Africa apply, sign, pay and come back for repeat loans in English and ZAR.

Applications in minutes

Borrowers apply on the web or in the app, and staff file applications from the back office. A half-filled form waits for them to come back.

New application

Draft saved
Step 2 of 4 · Personal detailsStep 2/4

Reminders that get read

Approvals, due dates and overdue notices go out by WhatsApp Business and Clickatell automatically.

Your application is approvedWhatsApp Business
Your payment is due tomorrowClickatell
New receipt in your portalInfobip

Rewards for repeat borrowers

Points for on-time payments, promo codes for campaigns and manual adjustments by staff.

WELCOMEfirst loan
Bonus balance1,240 pts

A portal for repeat loans

Repeat borrowers reapply without retyping data, extend or repay from their phone.

Extend loan
Repay early
Refinance

Contracts without paperwork

Loan agreements, extension requests and receipts are generated and e-signed in English.

Loan agreementSigned
Extension requestReady
Payment receiptDraft

Decisioning

Decisions in seconds, explained in plain words

Third-party and built-in checks run in one flow, for individuals and businesses. Every approval and decline shows the rules and scores behind it.

  • Every check in one passAnti-fraud, identification, credit bureaus, sanctions and digital footprint.
  • Rules you can readYour team can answer any borrower about why.

Application #48213

Thandi · Consumer loan, 6 months · R 10 000

Approved
Credit score712
  • IdentityVerified
  • Anti-fraudPassed
  • Credit bureau712
  • Debt-to-income31%
  • Sanctions & watchlistsClear
Decision time28 s

Local stack

The South Africa stack, connected before kickoff.

lendhero ships with the connectors lenders in South Africa use every day, from TransUnion to DebiCheck. New ones are added through the open API.

  • Credit bureaus & registries4 connectors
    • TTransUnion
    • EExperian
    • XXDS
    • VVeriCred
  • Identity & KYC3 connectors
    • DDHA (Home Affairs)
    • SSmile ID
    • VVerifyNow
  • Bank & alternative data2 connectors
    • SStitch
    • BBank statement parsing
  • Disbursement rails3 connectors
    • PPayShap
    • EEFT
    • OOzow
  • Repayments & collections3 connectors
    • DDebiCheck
    • NNAEDO
    • PPayShap
  • Messaging3 connectors
    • WWhatsApp Business
    • CClickatell
    • IInfobip
  • E-signature2 connectors
    • DDocuSign

Checks and payments

Who borrows and how money moves in South Africa

Applicants are checked with TransUnion and Experian, and money moves via PayShap and EFT.

Client checks

Checks connected in South Africa:

  • Anti-fraud servicesDevice, behaviour and blacklist checksPass
  • Identity verificationDHA (Home Affairs), Smile ID, VerifyNowPass
  • Credit bureausTransUnion, Experian, XDSPass
  • Government registriesNational ID and tax registriesPass
  • Bank and alternative dataStitch, Bank statement parsingReview
  • Additional data sourcesTelco, open banking and your own listsAuto

Payment infrastructure

Payment rails connected in South Africa:

DisbursementPayShap, EFT, Ozow in ZAR
RepaymentDebiCheck, NAEDO, PayShap
Status checksEvery payment tracked until it settles
Reversals and refundsCancel or refund with a full audit trail
  • PayShap
  • EFT
  • Ozow
  • DebiCheck
  • NAEDO

Loan servicing

Every loan and every repayment on one screen

Edit terms, recalculate interest, apply penalties and follow the full schedule without exporting anything.

  • Automatic calculations for every loanInterest, fees and penalties in ZAR are calculated by a dedicated engine with 200+ configurable parameters. Staff can still adjust any amount by hand, and every change is logged.
  • Loan products in minutesSet up consumer, instalment and business products with their rules and scenarios in the admin panel, without a release.
  • Notifications tied to every calculationEach due date, penalty and recalculation sends the right message to the borrower and your team.

Loan #48213

R 10 000

On track
Auto-calculated · 200+ parametersManual edit
Repaid R 3 570 of R 10 7002 of 6 payments
DateAmountStatus
Sep 4R 1 780Paid
Oct 4R 1 780Paid
Nov 4R 1 780Due in 7 days
Dec 4R 1 780Upcoming
Jan 4R 1 780Upcoming
Reminder sentYour payment of R 1 780 is due Nov 4

Loan flow

How a loan runs in South Africa. Five steps, all local.

  1. 01ApplyBorrowers apply on the web, in the app or via WhatsApp, with forms in English, Afrikaans and isiZulu.
  2. 02VerifyIdentity and documents are checked through DHA (Home Affairs) and Smile ID.
  3. 03DecideScorecards pull TransUnion and Experian data and return a decision in seconds.
  4. 04DisburseFunds go out via PayShap or EFT in ZAR, straight after signing.
  5. 05CollectRepayments arrive via DebiCheck and NAEDO, with reminders over WhatsApp Business.

Portals

One platform, three portals

Everyone works in the same system and sees only what their role allows.

My loan

R 10 000

Next payment

R 1 780 · Nov 4

Pay now

Extend loan

Customer portal

Borrowers apply, repay, extend and track loans online.

Applications

ThandiVerifierApproved
Daniel O.AnalystReview
Maria L.RiskApproved
Tomas K.AnalystDeclined
Lena P.VerifierReview

Staff portal

Managers, analysts, risk, verifiers and collectors work side by side.

Role · Verifier

12 users
View applications
Verify documents
Approve loans
Edit loan terms
Export reports

Super-admin portal

Products, roles, permissions and rules change without a release.

Products

What lenders in South Africa launch on .

Unsecured personal loansNCA-aligned pricing, affordability checks and DebiCheck mandates.
Payroll and pension-backed loansDeduction-based credit with employer integrations.
SME fundingMerchant cash advances and invoice finance.

Compliance

Configured for NCR and POPIA.

lendhero is software: the licence stays yours. We set the platform up for the rules you operate under in South Africa.

Hosting & data residency

Cloud or on-premise deployment, with data stored where POPIA requires.

Consent & privacy

Borrower consents are captured, versioned and logged under POPIA.

Pricing & disclosures

Rates, fees and cost-of-credit disclosures set per product for NCR rules.

Audit trail

Every decision, edit and message is logged for internal and external audits.

More markets in Southern Africa

All Africa markets

Questions

Frequently asked

Didn’t find the answer? Write to us and we’ll reply within one business day.

Can lendhero run a lending business in South Africa?+

Yes. The platform is set up for ZAR, English, Afrikaans and isiZulu and NCR requirements, with 19 local connectors ready on day one.

Which credit data sources are connected in South Africa?+

TransUnion, Experian, XDS. On top of that, identity checks run through DHA (Home Affairs), Smile ID and VerifyNow and bank data comes from Stitch and Bank statement parsing.

How do borrowers get paid and repay?+

Payouts go out via PayShap, EFT and Ozow in ZAR. Repayments arrive via DebiCheck, NAEDO and PayShap, with reminders over WhatsApp Business and Clickatell.

How long does a launch in South Africa take?+

Usually 1–2 weeks from kickoff to the first loan, including connecting 19 local services, product setup, staff training and a test run.

Can we run several countries on one platform?+

Yes. One installation serves several countries, each with its own currency, products, languages and local connectors.

Book a demo

Lending in South Africa? Let’s plan the launch.

We’ll walk you through the platform, show what matters for your products and answer questions about your business.

  • A 30-minute call
  • A walkthrough on your products and markets
  • Answers on timeline, integrations and pricing

Tell us about your lending

We reply within one business day.

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