Investing / Rate card
South Africa rate card
What safe money earns in South Africa today, and what inflation takes back. Reserve Bank data, each figure dated, each one shown with its real yield. Latest reading 2 October 2026.
What the numbers say today
- The 364-day Treasury bill yields 7.50% against inflation of 4.40%, a real yield of +3.10 percentage points. Safe short-term money is ahead of inflation, before tax and fees.
- Long bonds yield 9.05%, which is 1.55 percentage points above the 364-day bill. Investors are paid more for lending to the government for longer, the usual shape.
- Prime is 3.50 percentage points above the repo rate of 7.25%.
- Borrowing on overdraft at prime costs 3.25 percentage points more than safe short-term money earns, so repaying expensive debt usually beats parking cash.
The Reserve Bank and the money market
Set by the Reserve Bank or quoted between banks. Prime is what overdrafts and most business loans follow.
| Instrument | Rate | Real yield | Since last reading | Over 12 months |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SARB repo rate2 Oct 2026 | 7.25% | +2.85 pp | no change | +0.25 pp |
| Prime lending rate2 Oct 2026 | 10.75% | +6.35 pp | no change | +0.25 pp |
| JIBAR, 3 months1 Oct 2026 | 7.22% | +2.82 pp | no change | +0.22 pp |
| ZARONIA1 Oct 2026 | 7.10% | +2.70 pp | −0.01 pp | +0.24 pp |
Treasury bills
Short government IOUs. The closest thing to risk-free short-term money in rand.
| Instrument | Rate | Real yield | Since last reading | Over 12 months |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Treasury bill, 91 days1 Oct 2026 | 6.93% | +2.53 pp | no change | +0.09 pp |
| Treasury bill, 182 days1 Oct 2026 | 7.52% | +3.12 pp | no change | +0.40 pp |
| Treasury bill, 273 days1 Oct 2026 | 7.57% | +3.17 pp | no change | +0.48 pp |
| Treasury bill, 364 days1 Oct 2026 | 7.50% | +3.10 pp | no change | +0.52 pp |
Government bonds
Longer government debt. Prices move with yields, so the yield is a benchmark, not a guaranteed return.
| Instrument | Rate | Real yield | Since last reading | Over 12 months |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Government bond R2030 yield1 Oct 2026 | 8.22% | +3.82 pp | +0.08 pp | +0.35 pp |
| Government bond R209 yield1 Oct 2026 | 8.99% | +4.59 pp | +0.10 pp | – |
| Bond yields, 5 to 10 years1 Oct 2026 | 8.83% | +4.43 pp | +0.08 pp | −0.34 pp |
| Bond yields, 10 years and longer1 Oct 2026 | 9.05% | +4.65 pp | +0.07 pp | −0.64 pp |
Inflation
The yardstick for every real yield above. Consumer inflation is what households and most businesses feel; producer inflation is what factories and suppliers pay.
| Measure | Twelve-month change | Comparison |
|---|---|---|
| Consumer inflation (CPI)31 Aug 2026 | 4.40% | 3.30% a year earlier |
| Producer inflation (PPI)31 Aug 2026 | 5.02% | 2.07% a year earlier |
Three years of rates against inflation
When the 364-day bill line sits above the inflation line, safe short-term money is earning a positive real return.
Prime lending rate364-day Treasury billConsumer inflation
Bank and retail products
We publish a product rate only after reading it on the provider’s own page, with the date. No product rates are listed yet, because the public pages for them either had no readable rate or were unavailable when we last checked.
- RSA Retail Savings Bonds. National Treasury prices the fixed-rate bonds off the 2, 3 and 5 year government bond yields on the last business day of each month and publishes the new rates on the RSA Retail Savings Bonds site. The government bond yields in the table above show which way those rates are likely to move.
- Bank call accounts and fixed deposits. Each bank sets and publishes its own. Compare them with the Treasury bill yield above, and ask whether the quoted rate is fixed, what the term is, and what the notice period is.
Common questions
What is a real yield?
A real yield is an interest rate minus inflation. A 364-day Treasury bill paying 7% while consumer inflation runs at 3% has a real yield of about 4 percentage points: your money grows 4 points faster than prices. A negative real yield means the money buys less over time, before tax and fees.
Why is the Treasury bill rate not the rate my bank pays me?
Treasury bill yields are what the government pays to borrow for a fixed period, set at auction. A bank sets its own rates for call accounts and fixed deposits, and they are normally below or around bill yields depending on the product, the amount and the term. Use the bill yield as a benchmark for what safe short-term money is worth, then compare your bank against it.
Where do these numbers come from?
From the South African Reserve Bank's public web indicators, which the Bank publishes from its own records. The page re-reads them every hour and shows the date of each observation, so you can see how fresh every figure is. Inflation is Statistics South Africa's consumer price index, as published through the same Reserve Bank series.
Are these rates investment advice?
No. They are published benchmarks. Rates change, tax applies to interest, and products differ in risk and access. Check the current rate with the provider before you act, and speak to a licensed adviser about your own situation.
How this page works
Figures are the South African Reserve Bank’s published web indicators, re-read every hour. Real yield here is the rate minus the latest twelve-month consumer inflation reading, a simple measure that ignores tax and fees. Reserve Bank series are published with different delays, so the date under each name is the date of that reading. More on what to do with the numbers in our Investing guides, and charts for every series on the markets dashboard.
General information only. Nothing here is investment, tax or legal advice: confirm rates and terms with the provider and speak to a licensed adviser about your own situation.