Close Menu
TechCentralTechCentral

    Subscribe to the newsletter

    Get the best South African technology news and analysis delivered to your e-mail inbox every morning.

    Facebook X (Twitter) YouTube LinkedIn
    WhatsApp Facebook X (Twitter) LinkedIn YouTube
    TechCentralTechCentral
    • News

      South Africa pioneered drone laws a decade ago – now it must catch up

      17 June 2025

      South African AI energy start-up in R32m funding round

      17 June 2025

      New platform helps homeowners avoid delays in property sales

      17 June 2025

      Vodacom CEO Joosub bags R71m in pay – but taxman will take a big cut

      17 June 2025

      Meta bets $72-billion on AI – and investors love it

      17 June 2025
    • World

      Trump Mobile dials into politics, profit and patriarchy

      17 June 2025

      Samsung plots health data hub to link users and doctors in real time

      17 June 2025

      Yahoo tries to make its mail service relevant again

      13 June 2025

      Qualcomm shows off new chip for AI smart glasses

      11 June 2025

      Trump tariffs to dim 2025 smartphone shipments

      4 June 2025
    • In-depth

      Grok promised bias-free chat. Then came the edits

      2 June 2025

      Digital fortress: We go inside JB5, Teraco’s giant new AI-ready data centre

      30 May 2025

      Sam Altman and Jony Ive’s big bet to out-Apple Apple

      22 May 2025

      South Africa unveils big state digital reform programme

      12 May 2025

      Is this the end of Google Search as we know it?

      12 May 2025
    • TCS

      TechCentral Nexus S0E1: Starlink, BEE and a new leader at Vodacom

      8 June 2025

      TCS+ | The future of mobile money, with MTN’s Kagiso Mothibi

      6 June 2025

      TCS+ | AI is more than hype: Workday execs unpack real human impact

      4 June 2025

      TCS | Sentiv, and the story behind the buyout of Altron Nexus

      3 June 2025

      TCS | Signal restored: Unpacking the Blue Label and Cell C turnaround

      28 May 2025
    • Opinion

      Beyond the box: why IT distribution depends on real partnerships

      2 June 2025

      South Africa’s next crisis? Being offline in an AI-driven world

      2 June 2025

      Digital giants boost South African news media – and get blamed for it

      29 May 2025

      Solar panic? The truth about SSEG, fines and municipal rules

      14 April 2025

      Data protection must be crypto industry’s top priority

      9 April 2025
    • Company Hubs
      • Africa Data Centres
      • AfriGIS
      • Altron Digital Business
      • Altron Document Solutions
      • Altron Group
      • Arctic Wolf
      • AvertITD
      • Braintree
      • CallMiner
      • CYBER1 Solutions
      • Digicloud Africa
      • Digimune
      • Domains.co.za
      • ESET
      • Euphoria Telecom
      • Incredible Business
      • iONLINE
      • Iris Network Systems
      • LSD Open
      • NEC XON
      • Network Platforms
      • Next DLP
      • Ovations
      • Paracon
      • Paratus
      • Q-KON
      • SevenC
      • SkyWire
      • Solid8 Technologies
      • Telit Cinterion
      • Tenable
      • Vertiv
      • Videri Digital
      • Wipro
      • Workday
    • Sections
      • AI and machine learning
      • Banking
      • Broadcasting and Media
      • Cloud services
      • Contact centres and CX
      • Cryptocurrencies
      • Education and skills
      • Electronics and hardware
      • Energy and sustainability
      • Enterprise software
      • Fintech
      • Information security
      • Internet and connectivity
      • Internet of Things
      • Investment
      • IT services
      • Lifestyle
      • Motoring
      • Public sector
      • Retail and e-commerce
      • Science
      • SMEs and start-ups
      • Social media
      • Talent and leadership
      • Telecoms
    • Events
    • Advertise
    TechCentralTechCentral
    Home » Banking » African Bank is being beaten back into shape with digital plan

    African Bank is being beaten back into shape with digital plan

    By Agency Staff25 March 2019
    Twitter LinkedIn Facebook WhatsApp Email Telegram Copy Link
    News Alerts
    WhatsApp

    African Bank Holdings is joining the rush into digital banking to fail-proof the business and provide an exit for shareholders that resurrected the South African lender from its collapsed former parent.

    The firm’s unusual owners, which includes the South African central bank and six of the nation’s largest lenders, stepped in to save it with an equity injection when African Bank Investments went into administration five years ago. Now, as the business gets back on its feet, the bank’s competitors will want a way out, whether that be an initial public offering or a takeover, said CEO Basani Maluleke.

    “We’re re-positioning the bank, so we can have that conversation with our shareholders when the time is right,” she said in an interview. “Starting our new product offering is our immediate focus as we build the bank.”

    We’re re-positioning the bank, so we can have that conversation with our shareholders when the time is right

    African Bank is staging its comeback in a much tougher economy and a crowded field as its bigger competitors and owners, including Standard Bank and Absa, compete more aggressively to boost revenues. At least three new players are entering the industry, hoping to draw away customers with low-cost digital offerings.

    African Bank’s peers came to the rescue to protect the nation’s financial system when too many of the lender’s customers defaulted on their unsecured loans and it was unable to raise more cash on capital markets. Now, the bank is diversifying its revenue base away from unsecured credit, and trying to raise deposits to strengthen its funding base, Maluleke said.

    “There’s no question that unsecured lending will remain a significant contributor to our revenues over the medium term,” the CEO said.

    ‘Very pregnant’

    African Bank is launching a transactional banking offering to clients and will add more products, such as additional insurance policies. The lender is partnering with Direct Transact, a Pretoria-based provider of electronic banking and payment processing services, and Portuguese financial technology firm ebankIT.

    “We’re very pregnant with our digital transaction banking product,” Maluleke said. “It’s being tested by employees and made available to some of our customers already.”

    After tightening its credit risk appetite, African Bank is digging deeper into client data to find other ways of growing the business, CEO Gustav Raubenheimer said in the same interview. For example, it’s extracting information from two different credit bureaus rather than just relying on one.

    African Bank will also keep prices low and turn its 392 branches into service hubs where clients can seek advice, Maluleke said.

    The company is aiming to grow non-interest revenue to more than R500-million by 2021, from R27-million at the end of September, and more than double its customer base to 2.5 million by then.

    “While changing our unique shareholder structure is important, it is not on the front burner,” Maluleke said. “Our aim is to first create an asset that investors will be keen to buy into.”  — Reported by Roxanne Henderson and Loni Prinsloo, with assistance from Antony Sguazzin and Amogelang Mbatha, (c) 2019 Bloomberg LP



    African Bank Basani Maluleke
    Subscribe to TechCentral Subscribe to TechCentral
    Share. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp Telegram Email Copy Link
    Previous ArticleYouTube bows out of Hollywood arms race with Netflix
    Next Article Going off-grid is easier, and cheaper, than ever

    Related Posts

    PayShap is getting a huge upgrade

    25 November 2024

    How South Africa’s banks became bakgat

    30 November 2023

    African Bank to acquire Ubank ahead of JSE listing

    26 August 2022
    Company News

    Altron: a brand journey, a birthday celebration and a bet on Joburg’s future

    17 June 2025

    7 benefits of social media integration in WordPress

    17 June 2025

    Paratus Zimbabwe and PowerTel strike milestone deal

    17 June 2025
    Opinion

    Beyond the box: why IT distribution depends on real partnerships

    2 June 2025

    South Africa’s next crisis? Being offline in an AI-driven world

    2 June 2025

    Digital giants boost South African news media – and get blamed for it

    29 May 2025

    Subscribe to Updates

    Get the best South African technology news and analysis delivered to your e-mail inbox every morning.

    © 2009 - 2025 NewsCentral Media

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.