Customers to benefit from disruption in retail banking, says FNB
The bank’s vision is to be a trusted money manager
Customers will be the main beneficiaries of disruption and increased competition in retail banking, due to a potential improvement in value and customer service.
This is according to Raj Makanjee, chief executive of FNB Retail, reflecting on the increasingly competitive environment as new entrants enter the market.
“Competition is vital to improving customer-centricity in the delivery of banking products and services, especially in a retail banking market, where customers expect every rand to generate real value.
This is a journey we’ve been on as a bank in our quest to be a trusted money manager and an integrated financial services provider,” he says.
In FNB’s recent annual results, the retail banking division delivered 18% profit growth against the backdrop of a tough economic environment. The quality of FNB’s transactional business was further demonstrated by strong growth in retail customer numbers, which contributed to growing the bank’s overall customers to 8.15-million by June 2018.
FNB has disbursed more than R10-billion worth of eBucks while its eWallet recorded 41% growth, surpassing R21-billion in terms of value of money sent in the last 12 months. The bank counts 6.1-million active wallets and recently introduced the eWallet eXtra mobile bank account, which has no monthly account fee, and can be taken up using any cellphone.
In addition, FNB is now the leading retail deposit taker in South Africa, with growth coming from both product and banking channel innovations. The bank also reports strong progress in its digital journey, with financial transactions on the app growing by 65%.
Makanjee says: “The bank’s vision is to be a trusted money manager that delivers exceptional customer experience and superior value. We are excited by future opportunities across the transactional, lending, invest and insure areas of our business.”
“More importantly, we understand that our success and relevance depends on placing our clients at the centre of everything we do. In line with the realities that characterise our operating context, we continue to invest significantly in our people, systems and infrastructure for better customer experience.”