South Africa’s banking sector is set for its biggest shakeup in a generation as insurance groups, fintechs and retailers look to disrupt the mass market — a sector dominated by Capitec — with fintech also set for a boost as the Reserve Bank looks to bring them into the national payment system.
Retail group Pepkor is looking to woo the 32-million customers who visit its vast store network on a yearly basis to bank with it — presenting the most compelling banking proposition since Capitec burst onto the scene in the early 2000s.
Pepkor’s retail network is bigger than the branch networks of Capitec, Standard Bank, Absa and Nedbank combined.
It has more than 10-million customers across its digital ecosystem, giving it more options in the digitally dominated banking sector.
The Reserve Bank in 2025 approved Pepkor’s application to launch a banking presence in South Africa.
Capitec, which has amassed 25-million clients, is the country’s largest digital bank, with about 12-million of its customers banking with it digitally.
Old Mutual’s banking proposition, OM Bank, is set for a big year, with the financial services group placing a lot of emphasis on growing its banking business as consumer needs evolve amdi a rapid convergence of banking, insurance, and telecommunications.
OM Bank had a strong soft launch, after which the fledgling snapped up about 5,000 clients a day.
It heralds Old Mutual’s re-entry into the sector after its disinvestment from Nedbank in 2018 as part of the group’s managed separation.
It is targeting clients earning R8,000-R80,000 a month but has its work cut out in seeking to dominate the mass market.
Sanlam is stepping up its presence in the banking space via its partnership with TymeBank. It is building a “super app” that incorporates all the group’s capabilities and will include transactional banking facilities.
The app is being built in collaboration with GoTyme, formerly TymeBank. Various capabilities will enable users to transfer money, pay bills, buy electricity and data and apply for credit, among other functions.
It is revamping its loyalty programme by combining the different loyalty strands across the group into one offering. This will be integrated into the app, which is scheduled to be launched in the first half of 2026.
GoTyme has grown to about 12-million customers since going to market in 2019.
Revolut, the global fintech leader with more than 65-million retail customers, has submitted its section 12 application — the first formal step under the Banks Act to establish a bank in South Africa.
The lender has appointed erstwhile African Bank CEO Gaby Magomola as the chair of Revolut South Africa and tapped Jacques Meyer as its CEO. Meyer previously served as COO of TymeBank and group executive at the South African Revenue Service.
The Reserve Bank is working on a draft law to revamp the national payments ecosystem, setting the stage for the biggest payments reforms in a generation and a potential 0.5% in GDP growth.
Under the Bank’s 2030 strategy, which elevates payments modernisation to a core strategic pillar alongside price and financial stability, it estimates that faster, cheaper digital payments could trim the economy’s R30bn annual cash-management cost and widen access for underserved households and businesses. - Business Day
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