Category: <span>Banking</span>

Standard Chartered reported a higher than expected 57% jump in first-half profit and $350 million worth of shareholder payouts, but a fall in revenue showed the longer-term struggle ahead for the bank. StanChart announced a $250 million share buyback and resumption of interim dividend payments worth 3 cents per share, or $94 million in total,...

Capitec Bank on Monday announced that its clients can now get 2% cash back on their purchases at Dis-Chem and Baby City, when they pay with their Capitec debit or credit card. Capitec estimates that these new cash-back benefits can collectively save its clients over R25 million per year at Dis-Chem and Baby City. Mzansi...

First National Bank (FNB) is taking baking to the people through ATMs mobile banking. FNB is planning to rollout mobile ATMs in parts of KwaZulu-Natal that were affected by unrest, looting and arson. The bank is also looking to set up mobile bank branches where possible for communities to access banking. “Our mobile branches will offer...

Square Inc, the digital-payments platform led by Twitter Inc. founder Jack Dorsey, agreed to buy Australian buy-now, pay-later company Afterpay Ltd. for $29 billion in its largest-ever acquisition. The all-stock offer values Afterpay shares at A$126.21 each, 31% higher than Friday’s closing price of A$96.66, the companies said in a statement. Still, that’s less than Afterpay’s February high...

In 2020, e-commerce in South Africa spiked by 66%, driven by COVID-19-induced lockdowns and a drop in brick-and-mortar retail sales. This increase was accompanied by an upsurge in the use of instant Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) payments. Towards the end of last year however, the SA Reserve Bank, Payment Association of South Africa (PASA), and...

Payments and banking products work seamlessly together, providing sellers with a robust solution to manage cash flow – Square Square has launched Square Banking, a financial products suite designed to help small business owners manage their cash flow, according to a Tuesday (July 20) announcement. “Historically, small businesses have had to contend with numerous hurdles while...

The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) is warning the public against accepting banknotes stained with traces of blue and green ink. Looters targeted over 1,400 ATMs during last week’s violence in parts of the country. The Reserve Bank said it noticed an increase in the circulation of dye-stained notes in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng – which...

Standard Bank Group has table a buyout offer to Liberty Holdings. The bank seeks a total control of the insurance company which already has a 54% stake. In a statement, Standard Bank said that it has long enjoyed a strategic relationship with Liberty, thanks to a “highly successful and valuable bancassurance arrangement”. It now wants...

FNB plans to open 50 small community branches between 70 and 90 square metres in size – over the next three years. First National Bank said it wants to be more accessible to customers across the country. The smaller sized branches – of between 70 and 90 square metres – should allow it to do...

Did you know that almost half of young people between the ages of 15 and 24 around the world do not have a basic bank account at a formal financial institution[i]? In fact, less than 37% of youngsters in Sub-Saharan Africa are financially included in the formal banking sector[ii]. “Fortunately, with this generation never knowing a...