Chief economist of the central bank and member of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), Dr Monde Mnyande, said that the Bank would like to see household debt coming down.
"Consumers must be cautious in how they use credit cards in light of the easing by the Monetary Policy Committee," he said in answer to a question by I-Net Bridge.
"The policy does not imply that they should get into debt and use credit cards," he said.
The Bank highlighted in its Financial Stability Review that although there has been a moderation in the growth rate of household debt, households are still highly indebted.
Andre Bezuidenhout from the SARB's review committee said that he saw these concerns as an "amber light" rather than a red light.
"Our systemic assessment is banks have managed it appropriately," he said.
"It is something to watch, but is not something alarming in our assessment," he said.
Mnyande said, though, that this development is one of the concerns that the MPC will monitor.
Francis Selialia, also from the review committee, said that this was not a danger point per se, but something that would need to be monitored by the authorities.
He added: "Yes, indeed, anecdotal evidence tells us people have used debt to repay debts. Credit cards do also play a major role," he said.
Mnyande concluded the press briefing by saying that compared to the rest of the world South Africa is "still lucky".
He said that the Bank would be very involved in international meetings going forward as "something has to be done" so that global financial stability returns.
It was the first time the Stability report was launched at a press briefing, and Mnyande said it was in line with the huge importance around stability at this juncture and was thus an effort to communicate the central bank's views on this topic and stimulate serious debate, and raise the level of transparency regarding financial system arrangements.
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