As the Jali commission into banking fees continues, First National Bank (FNB) announced recently that it would be offering free banking on some of its services. FNB has already set the cat among the pigeons at the hearings by suggesting the removal of Saswitch fees on ATM transactions.
From June 1, when the Usury Act will be replaced by new credit pricing for unsecured loans, credit card providers will be able to charge much higher interest rates than previously. This means the banks will be willing to lend to higher-risk customers and, as a result, there will be even more credit card offers out there.
Vehicle insurance premiums have been soaring by 10% to 20% a year, adding to the cost of owning a car. Apart from the usual suspects — crime and the high cost of spare parts — reckless driving is becoming a major factor. But should cautious drivers be picking up the tab for the lunatics out there?
The banking sector, probably more than any other industry, feels the greatest impact of crime. Banks are, after all, the custodians of the money that the criminals are after. Bank robberies take an unquantifiable toll on staff morale and productivity. The costs of maintaining integrity in the banking system in the face of card and online fraud costs the industry hundreds of millions of rands.
A year ago, 1LifeDirect came to the market offering consumers the opportunity to cut out the broker and buy life cover directly. The industry was sceptical because other attempts at this model, such as Old Mutual’s Greenline, had not been a success. The argument was that, because it is a grudge purchase, people do not buy life insurance, writes Maya Fisher-French.
Property owners will be relieved to know that there has been a pick-up in property activity over the past quarter, according to the latest FNB residential property barometer. The index, which gauges property activity through 150 property agents, has been declining since the second quarter of last year as a direct result of interest rate hikes last year.
<i>M&G Money</i> has previously warned against falling for the status appeal of a gold card. The annual fees are higher, but the benefits are much the same as any other credit card — especially if you use it sensibly and pay off your full balance each month.
The Life Offices Association has made a recommendation that HIV/Aids exclusions should be dropped on all existing life and disability policies because Aids should be treated like any chronic disease and not singled out for special pre-conditions. This is an important psychological step for the country in terms of how it views the disease.
We are concerned that you, the mother of empowerment, should be embroiled in such an ugly scandal. Unfortunately, we can’t say that we’re surprised that you and Absa have decided to terminate your services as a director. For the last few weeks, this parting has seemed inevitable.
Cellphone technology is the way of the future, was the overwhelming response from people who took part in a survey on mobile banking for low income customers. The survey is the first of its kind in the world on how low income people view mobile banking. South Africa was used in the study because it is the only country which a mobile banking service is targeted specifically at low income people with enough of a sample base