IT Business Analyst (Broader Africa)

FirstRand Bank Limited; Sandton; On-site; ZAR 900,000 - 1,300,000; Full time

Job summary

FirstRand Bank Limited is seeking a Senior Business Analyst to bridge business strategy and technology delivery across Payments & Core platforms within Global Markets Technology and Data for Broader Africa. The role translates business requirements into scalable, compliant tech solutions supporting payment processing, settlement, data initiatives and growth across African markets.

You will engage stakeholders, analyze payments architecture, apply BABOK standards and drive optimization across

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in a relevant field is required or equivalent work experience.
• Expert knowledge of SWIFT MT/FIN messages and processes; ISO20022 knowledge.
• Experience with SWIFT gpi services and cross-border payments regulations.

Responsibilities

• Engage with stakeholders to translate business problems into detailed requirements.
• Analyze end-to-end payments system architecture and its touchpoints.
• Apply BABOK best practices and standards.
• Identify opportunities for optimization, reuse and standardisation across platforms.
• Manage stakeholder relationships and initiate key meetings.
• Collaborate with vendors for incidents and new requirements.
• Coordinate testing to ensure delivered solutions meet requirements.
• Document business requirements, feasibility analyses, and cost/timeline estimates.
• Assist PM/Platform Lead with project cost, timelines and resource planning.
• Facilitate user workshops to obtain requirements and produce status reports.

Skills

SWIFT MT/FIN

ISO20022

SWIFT gpi

TIBCO

Payment networks

Data analysis

Requirement workshops

Cross-border payments

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science/Information Systems/Technology/Mathematics/Engineering

Tools

TIBCO

Job description

Job Description The purpose of the role is as follows:

The Senior Business Analyst is responsible for bridging business strategy and technology delivery across the Payments & Core platform within Global Markets Technology and Data for Broader Africa. The role ensures that business requirements are translated into scalable, efficient, and compliant technology solutions that support payment processing, settlement operations, data initiatives, and strategic business growth across multiple African markets.

Responsibilities:

• Engagement with stakeholders to understand business problems, needs and translate those into detailed business and/or functional requirements that include process, data, people and workflow specifications.
• Analyse and understand the end-to-end flow of the payments system architecture and consider all touchpoints and impacts when analysing new business requirements or changes to existing business requirements.
• Apply business analysis best-practices, consistent with the BABOK principles and standards.
• Identify and promote optimisation, re-use and standardisation opportunities within Platforms.
• Build and maintain professional working relationships with all stakeholders, displaying excellent abilities to initiate dialogue, listen, advise, influence and negotiate to achieve positive outcomes.
• Initiate meetings with key stakeholders to track progress, manage expectations and ensure stakeholders’ requirements are delivered.
• Engage and collaborate with the vendor on suitable solutions for incidents, production issues or new requirements.
• Assist with query and complaint management in a timeous manner.
• Coordinate and participate in the test effort to ensure that the delivered solution meets agreed business requirements and functional/process specifications.
• Ensure all the business requirements, evaluations and recommendations of business solutions, assessments and feasibility analysis are documented.
• Assist the PM or Platform Lead by advising, investigating, estimating, and calculating costs, timelines, resources and plans approval of the project stage business cases.
• Ability to extract data and perform data analysis.
• Facilitate workshops in conjunction with the PM in order to obtain business user requirements.
• Assist the PM or Platform Lead to generate weekly/monthly or adhoc status reports, using input from project teams for reporting to Project Sponsor.
• Perform root cause analysis with stakeholders, conduct interviews or workshops to further evaluate and identify solutions to meet business requirements.

Competencies:

• Analysis and attention to detail
• Conceptual/Big picture thinking
• Problem solving
• Customer Service Orientation
• Influencing & impact (incl. negotiation)
• Knowledge sharing
• Process and technological competence

Experience Required:

• Expert knowledge of SWIFT MT/FIN messages and processes
• ISO20022 knowledge
• Understanding of the FIN/MT to ISO20022 translation mapping
• Expert knowledge and experience in SWIFT gpi services
• Knowledge of TIBCO integration services
• Understanding the various Payment market infrastructures, for e.g., , CBPR, SADC RTGS(SIRESS)
• Work experience within Payment’s domain (processing, clearing, Swift)
• Knowledge of cross-border payments regulations

Qualifications:

• A bachelor’s degree in computer science, Information Systems/Technology, Mathematics, Engineering or related discipline is required, or equivalent work experience.

Important Closing Date Note

13/11/26

All appointments will be made in line with FirstRand Group’s Employment Equity plan. The Bank supports the recruitment and advancement of individuals with disabilities. In order for us to fulfill this purpose, candidates can disclose their disability information on a voluntary basis. The Bank will keep this information confidential unless we are required by law to disclose this information to other parties.

FirstRand provides a comprehensive range of financial services in South Africa and certain markets in broader Africa. The group also offers certain niche products and services in the UK and India. Listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) and the Namibian Stock Exchange (NSX), FirstRand Limited is the largest financial institution by market capitalisation in Africa. The group follows a multi-branding approach. Its portfolio of financial services businesses includes FNB, RMB, WesBank, Ashburton Investments, Aldermore, MotoNovo and DirectAxis. Many are leaders in their respective segments and markets, offering transactional, lending, investment and insurance products and services. The FirstRand Corporate Centre houses many of the critical functions required by a large and complex financial services group. The group's track record of delivering superior returns to shareholders has been achieved through a combination of organic growth, acquisitions, innovation and the creation of completely new businesses. The group’s purpose of delivering Shared Prosperity provides many opportunities for employees to innovate to address social and environmental challenges in our markets. All of our businesses have successful Volunteering programmes which also allow employees to adopt and support causes close to their hearts.