Main image: Capitec Bank/Twitter
After 21 years of existence, Capitec Bank has surpassed major players such as First National Bank and Standard Bank.
The Western Cape-based banking institution has reached the milestone of 20 million customers, which is considered huge by CEO Gerrie Fourie.
Capitec’s record for number of customers surpasses its 185-year-old rival FNB and 160-year-old Standard Bank.
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Capitec, which turned 22 early this month and registered 20 million customers, means their number is greater than the population of the Netherlands, Zimbabwe or Senegal.
“We are incredibly grateful for the trust placed in us by more than 20 million customers. We’ve spent years trying to meet and exceed our clients’ needs at every step of their financial journey. At Capitec, it’s all about the customer,” Fourie told News24 Business.
In its 22 years of existence, Capitec’s share price has risen from less than R1 to more than R1 600 and climbed to R2 273.48 in April last year.
However, the CEO explained what the bank has learned during this 22-year journey to keep things simple.
“One of the biggest lessons we have learned as a bank over the past 22 years is how important it is to keep things simple. That is why we continue to offer a single Global One bank account without complicated points systems or tiers to determine the quality of service we provide to a diverse group of customers,” he added.
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“After 22 years, it’s not over for us – it’s only just begun.”
He said the bank had built up strong muscle to adapt to the ever-changing and highly competitive market, with more to come.
Among other things, the bank has changed the way banks operate in South Africa by opening its branches much later in the day and also serving customers on weekends.
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In addition, it also switched from a primarily in-branch service bank to offer more of its services through a mobile app, including loan applications, which it processes in real time.
BusinessTech Africa reported that Capitec has announced that it has reached a major milestone and is currently banking more than 20 million customers.
According to Fourie, this strengthens the group’s position as the largest retail bank in South Africa in terms of customer numbers, with a customer base larger than the populations of Malawi, Zambia and the Netherlands.
Fourie unveiled the achievement during a celebration of the bank’s 22nd anniversary.
