A mere 18 months into existence and TymeBank has raked in three significant international accolades, owing to its strong value proposition to consumers.
It is the same value proposition which has seen the bank consistently onboarding just over 100 000 customers each month. The bank has previously set an ambitious goal of achieving 2 million customers by the end of December 2020. As a result of the strong customer demand for TymeBank’s products and services, the bank is now likely to achieve the milestone of 2 million customers by the end of July. In addition, the bank has already onboarded over 15,000 SMEs onto its small business proposition.
Since its launch in February 2019, TymeBank succeeded in making it onto Forbes’ coveted List of the World’s Best Banks – being rated as the second-best bank in South Africa.
Hot on the heels of the Forbes accolade came the InSites Consulting SITEisfaction® report which ranked TymeBank only seven points shy of first place. The report, which measures customer satisfaction related to digital banking services, recognises TymeBank for its user-friendliness, safety features and affordability.
Most recently, TymeBank has been shortlisted in the Financial Times and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) Transformational Business Awards 2020 in the Innovating for the Most Vulnerable and Disadvantaged category.
TymeBank CEO, Tauriq Keraan, commented:
“We are humbled by these accolades, as a business we have only been in market for 18 months. We appreciate the recognition from customers that we are serving them in the right way. It inspires us to continue offering accessible, digital banking to meet the needs of our customers and potential customers.”
TymeBank is considered to be one of the fastest-growing digital banks in the world – mostly due to its accessible, low cost and high-reward model that has earned customer respect and appreciation. This value proposition has also resulted in the bank attracting nearly R10 billion in customer deposits since launching.
Doing digital in an accessible way
While being a digital bank is key to TymeBank passing on massive cost savings to its customers (through not having to carry many additional costs like traditional branch-based banks), through human-centric design, TymeBank has also ensured that its digital value proposition has not alienated customers who may not necessarily be tech savvy. This is evident by the fact that customers open an account in under five minutes using its cutting-edge kiosk technology located in Pick ‘n Pay and Boxer stores. Customer can also bank whilst they shop to make withdrawals and deposits at till points and they can buy services like airtime, data and electricity through their accounts.
“In these unprecedented times where we are all adapting to living during a global pandemic, the need to be able to bank in an accessible and efficient way is more important than ever,” says Tauriq. “Our customers have the benefit of fast and convenient access without the hassles which are traditionally associated with legacy banks.”
Reward when and where it counts
TymeBank customers benefit from a partnership with Pick ‘n Pay that gives them double Smart Shopper points when they swipe their cards in Pick ‘n Pay stores as well as the ability to earn points when they swipe elsewhere. That, and the dramatic savings experienced as a result of switching accounts, tends to see big benefits month-on-month for TymeBank customers.
Sending money made easy
TymeBank’s SendMoney has also made it very easy for those wanting to get money to others using their cell phone – customers can send cash to anyone with a valid South African cell phone number (they don’t even need a bank account) and the recipient will receive it immediately. The service costs only R4 per transaction when the recipient opts to cash the money out using the voucher, which is regarded as one of the lowest rates in the industry, and is free when the recipient has a TymeBank account. The person receiving a SendMoney gets an SMS with an automatically-generated voucher number that they can use to withdraw the cash at any Pick ‘n Pay or Boxer till point.
Market leading rates paid on savings
The digital bank also uses its products to encourage a desperately-needed savings culture in the country with GoalSave – an account that sees customers who have deposited money earn up to 7% interest per annum on their GoalSave balance. GoalSave does not have any minimum balances or penalty fees. TymeBank customers also pay zero monthly fees and very little on monthly transactions, compared to other bank offerings in the market.
“It’s become more important now than ever to offer customers accessible, trusted and good value for money banking products and services. Tyme Bank customers can really count on us to deliver for them and we will keep succeeding together – even in tough times,” says Tauriq.
