NTT DATA renews Absa deal to advance digital finance across Africa

Africa’s banking sector is steadily moving toward modern financial systems as lenders invest in technology to manage operations more efficiently.

From cloud platforms to integrated finance software, banks are upgrading core systems to improve reporting, strengthen compliance and gain faster access to reliable data. 

The shift reflects broader changes across the continent’s financial industry.

As competition grows and regulations tighten, banks are under pressure to modernize internal systems that support everything from accounting to group reporting. 

For major lenders such as Absa, technology has become central to running a large multi-country operation.

The bank operates in several African markets and requires consistent financial reporting across jurisdictions. 

Against this backdrop, Absa has renewed and extended its partnership with NTT DATA, a global IT services provider, to support its financial systems.

The new five-year agreement focuses on maintaining and improving the bank’s SAP S/4HANA reporting and financial consolidation platform.

Strengthening financial systems 

Under the agreement, NTT DATA will continue to provide application management services for Absa’s SAP S/4HANA environment.

The system plays a central role in the bank’s financial reporting structure, helping unify data from different markets while supporting stronger financial controls. 

The updated arrangement is part of Absa’s effort to modernize finance operations and apply consistent standards across the group.

By strengthening its digital infrastructure, the bank aims to improve reporting speed, data accuracy and operational oversight. 

“We’re proud to continue supporting Absa’s finance modernization with trusted SAP application management services,” said Lauren Wortmann, managing director of application services at NTT DATA in the Middle East and Africa.

She said the company’s focus is on maintaining stable operations while helping the bank improve reporting and gain clearer financial insights.

Building a single financial view across Africa 

The work forms part of a broader finance transformation led by John Annandale, Absa’s managing executive responsible for financial control functions and finance chief information officer. 

Under his leadership, Absa has consolidated financial ledgers across parts of the group, simplified reporting processes and moved core finance operations onto a SAP S/4HANA platform integrated with digital spend-management tools. 

“Our efforts to build a single source of financial truth for Absa across Africa are ongoing,” Annandale said.

“Extending our partnership with NTT DATA ensures we have the specialist SAP capability and dependable operations needed to support stronger controls, faster close cycles and better data for our business.”