Capitec Bank Holdings increased its earnings per share by 513% to 3,447 cents in the six months leading up to August 31 and shareholders will no doubt be applauding the declaration of a dividend of R 12 per share as no interim dividend has been made. declared last year.

Managing Director Gerrie Fourie said the results were “excellent” as overall earnings per share increased 35.5% from the interim period of 2019, and the banking group had to overcome the challenges of the unrest. and Covid-19.

Pre-tax operating profit increased 837% to 5.04 billion rand. Net asset value increased 22% to R31.96 billion. Deposits increased 16% to R127.9 billion. Net transaction income rose 33% to R 5.2 billion.

The number of customers increased by 15% to 16.8 million active customers. Fourie said in a phone interview that over the past four years, Capitec has added around 2 million new customers per year, but the most important thing is the services the bank can provide to its customers.

There were, for example, 8.9 million retail bank customers using digital channels – there had been a strong digital switchover in the intervening period – 1.5 million active Capitec funeral insurance policies and some 6 million savings customers, he said.

The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic has been difficult for the local economy, but it has also presented opportunities to improve the customer experience with new digital solutions, he said.

Despite this, the bank’s growth meant that it was still hiring more people, and some 500 vacancies were currently due to be filled, around 200 in branches and around 300 in the digital data space, he said. .

Some 623 million digital transactions were completed during the semester, an increase of 21%.

“We are seeing rapid growth in the digital economy in South Africa as customers also embrace contactless card payments and online shopping,” said Fourie.

The bank has typically tried to make at least four new enhancements or customer products available every six months, and the results have reflected the success of the digitization journey, he said.

Recent developments included the ability for a potential customer to download the retail banking app, scan their face and ID document, and open a Global One account in real time, as well as the ability to have their delivery delivered. his card in three working days.

Global One virtual cards with no transaction fees, designed for safer online shopping, could now be created through the app. The volume of transactions using the Scan to pay feature on all major QR codes continued to grow.

Improvements have also been made to internet banking services for merchant bank customers, he said.

Thanks to these innovations, Capitec won the Internet Banking and Mobile Banking categories of the SITEisfaction 2021 survey and was voted best digital bank in South Africa for 2021.

The bank was recently voted the Coolest Bank by South African Youth at the 2021 Sunday Times Generation Next Awards.

Civil unrest that caused the temporary unavailability of some branches in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng resulted in the strengthening of services offered by call centers by employees of affected branches.

The capacity of the online loan team has been enhanced and customers can now apply for credit cards and access services over the phone.

There has been a shift in customer behavior towards digital and point-of-sale (POS) transactions and a gradual return to pre-pandemic lending criteria.

Capitec has partnered with brands to create credit solutions with lower interest rates. Customers can, for example, apply for financing for home renovations from CTM, car financing from WeBuyCars and medical treatment from Mediclinic. Capitec Home Loans in partnership with SA Home Loans launched in November 2020 had processed more than 3,000 requests.

As part of its Live Better program, the bank has partnered with Dis-Chem, Shell, Educate24, GetSmarter, Hello Doctor, JOOX, Rentalcars.com and Travelstart.

“Within three months of launch, we had over 2.2 million customers who activated their Live Better Savings accounts. Our goal is to develop a strong culture of savings, ”he said.

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