South Africa’s fastest-growing banks in 2025 were not from the traditional banking sector. They are, in fact, popular South African retailers who have leveraged their extensive national footprint to develop banking capabilities. Another huge benefit for retailers moving into the banking space is having access to detailed spending behaviour of their customers, reports Daily Investor.
And Shoprite CEO Pieter Engelbrecht says his company is going even deeper into banking in 2026. “You are going to see us enter the banking world. We already have a banking account, which we’ve not even marketed. This new account will be the only truly zero-cost banking in the country. We are entering the financial services area more aggressively,” says Engelbrecht.
SOUTH AFRICA’S FASTEST-GROWING BANKS
In the push to diversify revenue streams, increase trading and enhance consumer loyalty, Shoprite leads the way. Its Money Market account launched back in 1998 and evolved into fully fledged banking in 2020, with more than four-million clients. Pick n Pay and Boxer followed in their wheel tracks by adding a host of financial services, too.
The litmus test for South Africa’s fastest-growing banks is the uptake of SASSA grant services in the absence of a dying PostBank. With nearly 45% of the population drawing some form of SASSA grant, this has allowed retailers to create a banking presence it might not otherwise have needed to within the low-income sector.
OTHER RETAILERS FOLLOWING SUIT
Moreover, Pepkor recently received regulatory approval to establish its own bank. With an unmatched store network already in place, it promises to be one of South Africa’s fastest-growing banks by the end of 2026. And it is Capitec who they’re taking aim at in the affordable-banking space.
Furthermore, Pick n Pay has also emphasised the shift in customer behaviour it sees in its stores. Use of its financial services accelerated dramatically in 2025, it says. Cash deposits at tills increased by 60% year-on-year. As has its value-added services and digital payment solutions.
SOUTH AFRICA’S FASTEST-GROWING BANKS IN 2026
Pick n Pay’s financial services are built on partnerships with FNB, RCS, PayJustNow, and MoneyBadger. And FNB plans to distribute insurance products alongside its banking offerings at Pick n Pay stores. Meanwhile, Shoprite hopes to leverage its substantial banking customer base by offering new funeral and pet insurance products at its counters through OUTsurance.
Likewise, a big driver behind South Africa’s fastest-growing banks is safe money transfers between individuals, both locally and internationally. This is where Shoprite Money Market’s 2 800 counters nationwide are unsurpassed. Most of its customers feel they are underserved by traditional banks and don’t even have a bank account elsewhere.
But what do you think? Do you feel underserved by traditional banks? Are you surprised to see South Africa’s fastest-growing banks are, in fact, retailers? Be sure to let us know in the comments section below …
