Capitec, South Africa’s largest digital bank, continues to support its over 15 million clients during this tough financial time through its new 2021 fees. No increases were applied to monthly fees or digital banking with the Global One monthly admin fee remaining flat at only R5, monthly credit card fee at R40, debit orders at R3.50 and digital payments at just R1.
Immediate payments were reduced further to R7.50 from R8 last year and from R10 three years ago showing the bank’s commitment to lead in innovative digital payment solutions.
“We’re keeping our competitive digital fees unchanged to meet client needs and further enable South Africa’s shift towards digital banking. We’ve also lowered the cost of immediate payments further to allow clients to easily pay people at other banks, a great alternative to large cash payments or an EFT that can take much longer to clear,” Francois Viviers, marketing, and communications executive for Capitec, says.
“The adoption of digital banking is growing rapidly as people seek ways to bank safely and maximise convenience. As a result, we now have over 5.1 million clients using our banking app every month, which has grown by over a million in the last 6 months.”
New digital features, consistent fees
Capitec further bolstered its digital offering to clients last year through the launch of their scan to pay functionality compatible across Zapper, SnapScan and MasterPass, a free virtual card and the ability to invest in shares on stock markets in South Africa and the USA from their banking app through the EasyEquities widget.
Email statements and transfers between own accounts remain free when using the banking app, USSD and Internet banking, while the cost of purchasing prepaid airtime and electricity also remains the same at 50 cents when using digital channels.
Capitec also introduced money in and money out notifications in their banking app as a free alternative to the traditional SMS notification at 40 cents.
Lowered ATM and Send Cash fees
ATM fees have become more affordable with withdrawals from Capitec ATMs dropping to R7.50 (previously R8) per R1000. Send Cash options are now cheaper as well at R7.50 for transactions up to R1000 (previously R8) and R15 for amounts from R1010 to R3000 (previously R16). Withdrawals from other banks’ ATMs have increased slightly with 75 cents to R9.75.
Cash withdrawal fees at retailers have increased slightly to R1.60 per withdrawal (previously R1.20), which means they remain the most affordable way for clients to get cash. Withdrawals can be done at Pick n Pay, Shoprite Checkers and Boxer stores nationwide.
Branch visits
In-branch services have gone up slightly, with payments at one of its over 840 branches countrywide, moving from R7 to R8. Card limit updates in branch have also increased to R8 (previously R7). However, in-branch statements (R12) remain unchanged.
Viviers notes that transactions involving people or physical money will generally cost clients more than their digital banking alternative, which remains the best way to bank in terms of both safety and affordability.
International card payments
In line with international card fees, Capitec will now be charging R3 for international card payments. This is a fixed fee and based on the cost of Mastercard’s international switching fee. The bank however remains committed not to charge a commission on the exchange rate where traditional banks easily add 2.5% to the transaction, making Capitec the most affordable option for international travel. Card payments made at South African retailers remain free.
Viviers concludes that the bank’s focus on relevant innovation that enables consumers to simplify their banking while improving affordability has allowed for the minimal changes in fees. “Our value has increased while our prices largely remain the same. We’ve experienced tremendous digital growth and we continue to prioritise this in line with our clients’ needs. This year we will introduce even more digital banking features that empower our clients to simplify their banking so that they can live better.”
