Abstract
Over the last few decades, the world has seen significant advancements in technology. The Fourth Industrial Revolution, which is revolutionising a number of global economic sectors, has resulted in most of these significant innovations in technology. The fundamental issue is that, despite all of these advancements, legislative authorities in the majority of countries, notably in Africa, appear to be failing to keep their legal structure up with the rapid pace of these improvements. For example, in South Africa, which is the primary focus of this research study, the banking system has substantial legal and regulatory weaknesses, particularly when it comes to providing proper legal protection to consumers who utilise these newly introduced electronic payment methods. Although most South Africans prefer to pay their monetary obligations using electronic methods of payment rather than in cash, the country’s legislature appears not to be influenced about amending the definition of legal tender. The author of this mini-dissertation thus investigates whether the South African legislature ought to amend its existing definition of “legal tender” in view of various considerations, including the security of utilising some of these new payment methods and the fact that they serve the same purpose as coins and banknotes, namely to fulfil monetary obligations. By incorporating some of these modern payment methods that do not require physical money into the definition of legal tender, South Africa will be able to develop a payment system that can serve a significant economic function both locally and globally. In this research study, the author discovered that not all of these new payment methods can be granted legal tender status since some lack the capacity to reverse payments, making them risky to use. That is why, in the recommendations, the writer of this mini-dissertation stated that when the South African legislature decides to amend section 17 of the South African Reserve Bank Act 90 of 1989, it is critical to consider the preservation of South Africans’ economic well-being. The findings of the research suggest that South Africa’s definition of legal tender should incorporate digital rands issued by the central bank and vanilla electronic funds transfers using the amendment method of insertion in order to comply with international standards, including the principle of financial inclusion. This is due to the fact that we are not yet prepared for a fully cashless economy; coins and banknotes are still necessary.