Mzansi, the account for the previously unbanked, had topped the 100 000 customer mark just over three weeks since it began, the Banking Council of South Africa (BCSA) said on Thursday.
The account is a joint effort between the country’s big four commercial banks — Standard Bank, First National Bank (FNB), Absa, Nedbank — and the state-owned Postbank.
BCSA access initiatives co-ordinator Charles Chemel said market response to Mzansi had exceeded expectations.
”At close of business on Tuesday we had opened 112 701 accounts,” Chemel said.
”While we are heartened by the response, this is a long-term initiative and the true acid test will be to see how the account is actually used by the consumers. We also need to be sure that it is the right target market who are opening Mzansi accounts”.
He said Mzansi, begun in response to the Financial Services Charter’s goal of providing affordable banking services to people in the lower income categories, had been priced significantly lower than existing banking products.
The aim was to encourage savings and simplify banking procedures.
Absa topped the list with 33 310 Mzansi accounts followed by Standard Bank (32 499), FNB (20 007), Postbank (17*nbsp757) and Nedbank (9 061). Mzansi opened for business on October 25. – Sapa