Thirty years ago, shortly after South Africa emerged from apartheid, I left London for Johannesburg in search of a better life. Not long afterwards, a friend who was preparing to visit from the UK called with an intriguing question: do they have ATMs in South Africa?
After I picked myself off the floor, I explained that not only did South Africa have ATMs, but in many respects its banking system was far more advanced than the one I had left behind in Britain. She was surprised and – dare I say – delighted that she wouldn’t have to lug a wad of cash around South Africa after all.
