TymeBank, one of the world’s fastest growing digital banks has announced that it has onboarded eight million customers as at 6 October 2023, which means one in every five eligible* South Africans now has a TymeBank account.

Commenting on this latest milestone, TymeBank CEO Coen Jonker says: “We are immensely proud of the fact that we have acquired eight million customers since launching in February 2019.  Our performance reinforces our position as one of the world’s fastest growing digital banks and a credible alternative to the legacy banks for South Africans. This pace of growth also brings us closer to our ambition of becoming one of the top three retail banks in the country.”

TymeBank’s customer acquisition rate has continued to accelerate, with more than 200,000 customers signing up every month and a 70% account activity rate on a rolling 30-day basis.

“What is particularly pleasing is the fact that the last million customers were acquired in record time – just under five months, despite ongoing challenges.

Read also : TymeBank Makes PayShap Transactions Free

“Our success can also be attributed to our tried-and-tested ‘phygital’ model, which seamlessly integrates the convenience of digital banking into physical retail ecosystems, while the strength of our partnerships with leading retailers such as Pick n Pay, Boxer and more recently TFG, allows us to optimise our distribution network,” says Jonker.

According to the bank, growth has been achieved despite ongoing outages at Home Affairs, which hinders the bank’s ability to securely verify customers’ identities during the onboarding process.

Loadshedding has also had an impact. Although TymeBank kiosks have battery backup, load shedding affects the operation of stores and shopping centres, and intermittent power supply compromises the network operators the bank relies on for moving data.  

Since launching PayShap in August as the only bank to allow payments to mobile numbers linked to any bank account for free, TymeBank has seen a steady increase in the usage of this real-time payment service. The bank’s fixed deposit product – launched earlier this year and offering South Africa’s best savings rates (11%) – has also been a huge success.

“We continue to see huge demand for our unique proposition that combines free banking and South Africa’s best savings rates. This has broadened our appeal among more affluent consumers, and we are now approaching R1 billion in balances for our fixed deposit product,” says TymeBank Chief Commercial Officer, Cheslyn Jacobs.

On the other end of the spectrum, TymeBank continues to gain traction among SASSA recipients. “We have put great effort into disbursing SASSA grants to beneficiaries and customer growth in that segment is solid. Our model is an ideal one for grant beneficiaries and more and more of them are choosing us to get their grant payments efficiently,” says Jacobs.

Read also : South African Fintech Stitch Secures $25 Million Investment to Expand Payment Solutions

TymeBank’s acquisition of Retail Capital, the largest SME funder of its kind in the sector, is also yielding good results. The bank now funds over 50,000 businesses with ~R9.5 billion of working capital; its funding portfolio has grown by 20% since the Retail Capital business was acquired in December last year.

Further proving the success of TymeBank’s formula is GoTyme Bank in the Philippines, which is currently growing at the same pace (200,000 customers per month) as its sister bank in South Africa. Launched in October 2022, GoTyme Bank reached the 1-million customer mark in August this year.

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

TymeBank, a South African digital bank, has marked a significant achievement by reaching eight million customers as of October 6, 2023. This milestone highlights that TymeBank now serves one in every five eligible* South Africans.

CEO of TymeBank, Coen Jonker, commented, “We are pleased to have acquired eight million customers since our launch in February 2019. This reinforces our position as a rapidly growing digital bank and a credible alternative to traditional banks in South Africa. This growth aligns with our goal of becoming one of the top three retail banks in the country.”

TymeBank continues to see a consistent increase in its customer base, with over 200,000 customers joining every month and a 70% account activity rate over a rolling 30-day period.

read also TymeBank Makes PayShap Transactions Free

Jonker credited this success to their ‘phygital’ model, integrating digital banking into physical retail environments. He also acknowledged partnerships with retailers like Pick n Pay, Boxer, and TFG, which have helped optimize their distribution network.

Challenges persist, including ongoing outages at Home Affairs affecting customer identity verification during onboarding. Load shedding, although mitigated by backup power for TymeBank kiosks, disrupts store operations and impacts the network infrastructure.

TymeBank introduced PayShap, a unique service allowing free payments to mobile numbers linked to any bank account, in August. Their fixed deposit product, offering South Africa’s best savings rates at 11%, has been well-received.

Cheslyn Jacobs, TymeBank’s Chief Commercial Officer, noted, “We continue to see strong demand for our proposition, appealing to a wider range of consumers. We are nearing a balance of R1 billion in our fixed deposit product.”

read also Sam Bankman-Fried Lied to the World as he Built FTX

TymeBank is also gaining traction among SASSA recipients, facilitating efficient grant payments.

The bank’s acquisition of Retail Capital, a major SME funder, has positively impacted their funding portfolio. They now support over 50,000 businesses with approximately R9.5 billion in working capital, representing a 20% increase since acquiring Retail Capital.

TymeBank’s international venture, GoTyme Bank in the Philippines, is progressing at a similar rate, reaching one million customers within a year of its launch.

In summary, TymeBank’s growth trajectory and innovative approach have led to this remarkable achievement of eight million customers in just four years, establishing the bank as a notable player in the digital banking landscape.

TymeBank customer TymeBank customer

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based lawyer, who has several years of experience working in Africa’s burgeoning tech startup industry. He has closed multi-million dollar deals bordering on venture capital, private equity, intellectual property (trademark, patent or design, etc.), mergers and acquisitions, in countries such as in the Delaware, New York, UK, Singapore, British Virgin Islands, South Africa, Nigeria etc. He’s also a corporate governance and cross-border data privacy and tax expert. 
As an award-winning writer and researcher, he is passionate about telling the African startup story, and is one of the con