Information superhighway beckons
Melt van der Spuy, director of business support, private and business banking at Standard Bank, says digitising cash flow holds significant benefits for small businesses.
“On the positive side, cash is cheap and is growing in excess of any other payment instrument locally; we estimate that about 30% of receivables in small businesses take the form of cash,” he explains.
“However, there are significant risks to using cash in business. It is not secure, difficult to monitor and is open to abuse from business owners and staff members. Bear in mind that SMEs are coming under stricter scrutiny in issues like corporate governance and compliance with SARS requirements, for example.
“The migration towards electronic banking is picking up speed in the SME sector. Branch banking at walk-in facilities are becoming expensive and it is for this reason, plus improved Internet access, that a lot of SMEs are starting to take the electronic route,” Van der Spuy added.
“With an Internet connection, SMEs can manage all of their transactions electronically. It’s cheap, convenient, easy and safe. Internet banking services allow small business operators to do anything from checking statements and balances to paying accounts and transferring money between accounts. Businesses are also able to conduct banking transactions whenever they feel like it — 24 hours a day, every day of the year.
“We are seeing significant uptake among the SME community of Business Online — it’s a very big focus area for us. We are investing heavily in small- business banking and in developing products and services that fit the needs of this market.”
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