Overall, the shift to electronic payments that is occurring makes a lot of sense – it is similar to other aspects of our lives where things that used to be physical have been supplemented with, or replaced by, technology. This shift is likely to promote our collective welfare.
The results achieved since then can be summarised as follows: In 1988 total credit extended to the private sector increased by 28 per cent which was, of course, far out of line with growth in the nominal value of the total gross domestic  BIS Review 24/1997  -6-  production of South Africa.