An international study by consultation firm Capgemini and its research partners, including the European financial management and marketing association, assessed South Africa's banking costs for the first time.

The World Retail Banking Report for 2007 would be presented to senior executive officers of local banks and the financial services sector.

This is the fourth study into retail banking.

South African cheque account holders are paying R1 863 a year in fees while the global average is R732.07, the report said. Cheque account holders pay more for payment services than consumers in almost all other countries paid for all banking services in total.

Business Report quotes Capgemini's domestic associate as saying that local users of lower service transactor accounts paid only 15% less than the global average for full-service cheque account customers (R627.56 compared with R732.07).

Stephen Asbury told the business daily that very active current account holders constitute only 8% of all local bank users, yet they pay 28% of all South African bank charges.

The report comes amid a probe by the Jali Commission into local bank charges.

A separate study by PricewaterhouseCoopers released on Tuesday showed that crime topped banks' fear list.

PwC said a new priority, from a list of macro issues affecting bank's operations, coming out of this year's survey is that banks are now placing the issue of crime, followed by recruitment of good personnel, at the top of their lists.

"Banks reported that emigration and inhibiting immigration policies are constraining the availability of quality staff and at the same time they have to address the requirements of affirmative action and employment equity."

Foreign and local banks have different areas of focus, with foreign banks intent on driving revenue growth. They also indicate a far greater commitment to South Africa from their parent companies than a few years ago, but foreign exchange controls in the country remain a concern to them, the study showed.