African countries south of the Sahara are set to experience a surge in growth in their banking systems during the rest of the decade, according to new research from the Economist Intelligence Unit.

The unit put growth down to very high rates of economic growth, financial deepening to fulfil huge unmet needs for basic financial services and new technologies to provide them — particularly over mobile phones.

However, the report also says the boom will vary markedly across the continent, with rapid expansion in Angola, Ghana, Tanzania and Uganda. Although countries such as South Africa, Botswana and Namibia will expand banking assets at rates below the regional average.