Yuan: Attijariwafa bank joins CIPS after Ecobank and Standard Bank, Africa tests non-dollar payments

The Moroccan group Attijariwafa bank has announced its membership in CIPS, the Chinese cross-border interbank payment and settlement system for the renminbi, reported Agence Ecofin on October 20, 2026. The stated objective is to allow its corporate and institutional clients to pay their Chinese partners in yuan, faster and with fewer intermediaries.

What CIPS is

Launched in 2015, the Cross-Border Interbank Payment System clears and settles cross-border payments in Chinese currency without systematically passing through the US dollar. It is one of the instruments of China's strategy to internationalize the renminbi. Attijariwafa bank, present in 27 countries including 15 in Africa, did not specify whether its membership grants it the status of a direct or indirect participant. Adil Hajji, the group's Director of International Banking, states that this membership strengthens its ability to "serve trade and investment flows between Morocco and China."

An African wave, not an isolated gesture

The movement extends well beyond Casablanca. Ecobank, based in Lomé and present in 34 African markets, signed a memorandum of understanding with CIPS on October 12, 2026; Semafor notes that South Africa's Standard Bank and the pan-African bank Afreximbank have taken the same step over the past year.

Volumes are beginning to emerge. According to Agence Ecofin, Standard Bank processed more than 8 billion yuan, approximately 1.2 billion dollars, via CIPS in July 2026, and in June 2026, it obtained authorization with China's ICBC for yuan clearing in 19 African countries.

The commercial context explains this appetite: according to Semafor, trade between China and Africa grew by 18% last year, driven in particular by African imports of Chinese solar equipment, and Beijing this year eliminated its customs duties on products from all African countries except Eswatini.

Financial sovereignty or a new window?

For an Ivorian, Kenyan, or Moroccan company, paying directly in yuan can shorten the banking chain and reduce dependence on a currency whose rates and sanctions are decided without Africa. It is a concrete issue of sovereignty at a time when the continent trades massively with China while invoicing in dollars.

The real gains, however, remain to be demonstrated. They will depend on the conversion costs of African currencies, the liquidity available in yuan, and the fees applied by banks, emphasizes Agence Ecofin. The exchange rate risk does not disappear: it simply changes currency. And none of the banks mentioned have quantified what their clients will save. Diversifying payment channels is a step forward; it will only become autonomy if African banks influence the rules, rather than just the connection.