GoTyme Bank, the digital lender backed by South African billionaire Patrice Motsepe, is targeting 30 million customers by 2036. The aggressive drive comes after the digital lender became the continent’s first profitable standalone digital bank, setting up an escalating battle against heavyweight Capitec Bank for dominance in retail consumer finance.

Chief Executive Officer Cheslyn Jacobs said in an interview that he wants the digital lender to bank one in two South Africans. Capitec currently sets the domestic pace with nearly 27 million clients and a market capitalization of $32.2 billion, which has secured its standing as Africa’s most valuable publicly listed company.

Chasing Capitec’s retail crown

GoTyme is leaning heavily on an alliance with Sanlam, the continent’s largest insurer, to mount its retail challenge. The cross-border tie-up clears both companies to take customer deposits, write unsecured personal credit, and distribute life cover by next year, effectively turning existing account bases into high-conversion financial cross-selling engines.

Sanlam holds a strong banking proposition to cross-sell to its 9 million clients, Jacobs said, while GoTyme brings an insurance pipeline to reach its 13 million users. The insurer expects up to 4 million new banking accounts by 2030, with its lending book hitting R10 billion ($600 million).

Big money reshapes insurance

The digital alliance aligns with Sanlam’s aggressive restructuring moves. The insurance group agreed in October to acquire remaining shares in Santam for R505 ($30.29) each. Sanlam Life’s buyout, valued at R20.7 billion ($1.24 billion), will privatize the century-old general underwriter as financial institutions streamline corporate structures to pool balance-sheet power.

Sanlam already controlled 62.7 percent of Santam, representing roughly 69 million shares before the buyout bid. The proposed transaction sweeps up the remaining minority float of 41 million shares. Unifying the businesses gives Sanlam tighter control over cash flows and balance-sheet reserves just as credit competition begins to heat up.

Retail giants turn bankers

South Africa’s digital banking race will soon face fresh disruption from Pepkor Holdings, the country’s dominant budget apparel and phone merchant. The retail group plans to roll out an independent financial institution next year, deploying foot traffic from its nationwide network of more than 6,000 storefronts to acquire low-cost deposits.

Pepkor’s massive retail operation moves 1 million handsets every month, Jacobs noted, giving the retail conglomerate an enviable captive base of consumer foot traffic. By blending handset distribution with credit lines, the store chain could quickly establish itself as a disruptive retail rival to existing low-cost branch networks.

Global scale backs valuation

Parent outfit Tyme Group continues to anchor GoTyme’s rapid expansion. Controlled by Motsepe’s African Rainbow Capital Investments, the operation signs 400,000 customers monthly across South Africa and the Philippines. Tencent Holdings backs the digital brand, which also maintains development and merchant operations across four major Asian markets.

Global investors valued Tyme Group at $1.5 billion in 2024 following capital infusions from Brazil’s Nu Holdings. Jacobs affirmed that a future public listing remains the end game, though shifting market conditions will dictate timing. The lender is privately eyeing an ultimate valuation benchmark above $15 billion upon debut.