As South Africa settles into an unprecedented 21-day national lockdown and banks look to do what they can to help ease the financial burden and very real anxiety the general public is facing, TymeBank says it has some solutions.
“Being South Africa’s first digital bank, we’re built for this. As other companies and banks are having to rethink and reinvent themselves to be fully functional, we’re already able to demonstrate the very real value digital banking can add to people’s lives,” says TymeBank CEO, Tauriq Keraan.
Speaking of real value at the right time, the bank’s SendMoney service has now been made 100% free during this difficult period.
Understanding that many South Africans at home can’t be with loved ones but still want to be there for them by ensuring they’re able to buy the essentials they need, this service allows the bank's customers to send cash to anyone with a valid South African cellphone number - they don’t even need a bank account.
There’s no need to leave home either, money can be sent online (via the bank’s SmartApp or Internet Banking site). Once logged in, customers need only to enter the cellphone number of the person they’re sending money to and the amount they want to send (up to a total amount of R5 000 per day). The recipient will then get an instant SMS with a voucher number with which thay can immediately withdraw cash at any Pick n Pay or Boxer till point nationwide.
With these shops being some of the only ones left open during lockdown, and with the public being generally encouraged to cut their outings to the bare minimum, this sync-up between bank and grocery shop reduces the need for additional visits to banks or ATMs.
In Tauriq’s words, “With South Africans being separated from people they care about, this lockdown is going to be as emotionally taxing as it is financially. Many of our customers support family members who they don’t live with. At least now they can send much-needed cash to them whilst still staying home. We’re offering this as a free service throughout this crisis, as we know every little bit counts – now more than ever.”
The waiving of TymeBank’s SendMoney charges comes just after their announcement last week that they would keep their interest rate for their GoalSave savings tool unchanged at 10%. This, after the Reserve Bank slashed the interest rates last week and most banks followed suit.
“We believe in offering our customers greater control over their money. In such uncertain times, when so little is in anyone’s control, we wanted to give our customers as much control and peace of mind as is possible – knowing that they will still be consistently earning the best interest rates on their savings for the next 3 months at the very least,” says Tauriq.
The bank’s move to maintain their interest rate on savings means that they’re prepared to take the hit themselves - instead of simply passing the buck onto the consumer.
Locked down South Africans looking to take advantage of the bank’s benefits needn’t leave their couch – simply visit their site and open an account online in under five minutes.