TymeBank to launch credit cards and expand to other countries
TymeBank has big plans for its business in 2021, from launching credit cards to expanding to two more countries.
The company’s strategy is aided by the R1.6 billion in funding it recently acquired from Apis and JG Summit.
MyBroadband spoke to TymeBank CEO Tauriq Keraan and co-founder Coen Jonker about the bank’s upcoming products and international expansion.
The bank already offers two insurance products and has begun rolling out a “buy now, pay later” product which can be enacted at payment points across the country.
This is only the beginning, however, as TymeBank plans to launch a credit card later this year.
Credit card plans
“The credit card offering is something we’ll be getting in the second half of this year,” Keraan said.
“The idea is to be discerning around who we target. I think there is immense potential in using basket data enabled in part by integration with Pick n Pay SmartShopper.”
He said the applicability of this type of offering has been proven in economies like Australia extensively.
“The first principle here is increasing the access to financial services and banking in this country,” Keraan said.
“But equally important is that we are a bank for all South Africans so we consciously target across sectors. The same is true for credit cards.”
He added that credit cards have a clear draw for higher-income consumers, but said there is an opportunity to create better access to credit facilities for consumers without extensive records.
“This is a way of growing the credit sector in South Africa as well,” Keraan said.
“It is our responsibility to close this growing gap that we have in our society.”
International expansion
When asked about TymeBank’s plans to expand to other countries, Jonker outlined the bank’s roadmap for international expansion.
“The next priority will be to take the business to the Philippines in our joint venture with JG Summit,” he said.
“We are almost ready to submit our licence application. We will launch a bank in the Philippines.”
This will be the second country that TymeBank will expand to after South Africa, but Jonker said they are already looking further ahead in terms of launching in other countries.
“Country number three is likely to be Malaysia or one of the other South-East Asian countries,” he said.
TymeBank currently has 2.8 million customers and is expected to reach a milestone of 3 million customers by the end of March 2021.
The bank is celebrating its second anniversary this month, having officially launched on 26 February 2019.
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