TymeBank acquires Retail Capital to bolster its business banking offering

By Edlyn Cardoza

TymeBank, one of South Africa’s fastest-growing digital banks, is set to bolster its business banking offering with new initiatives. The key to this is the proposed acquisition of Retail Capital, a FinTech company that provides funding to small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) in South Africa. The acquisition, subject to regulatory approvals, would see Retail Capital become a division of TymeBank and the foundation of the bank’s expanded business banking offering.

The deal would see Retail Capital’s funding expertise and TymeBank’s deposit base and operations combined to serve a broader customer base. TymeBank believes channelling funding efficiently to business owners in South Africa is critical to expanding the historically underserved small business sector.

“This acquisition will enable TymeBank to expand its offering to entrepreneurs to include working capital finance. Retail Capital has acquired significant risk management experience over the past decade and through different economic cycles. They have an experienced team in place and their risk models and operational processes have been battle-tested and optimised to a significant degree for small-business funding,” said TymeBank’s CEO Coen Jonker. “Together, we look forward to providing access to innovative solutions to ensure business owners can fuel their growth, drive job creation and contribute to the broader economy.”

The two entities have much to offer, with an evolving suite of digital solutions that make it easier to do business in a challenging environment. TymeBank’s current Business Banking offering includes a transactional business account that can be opened in under five minutes, zero monthly bank fees, free debit card and online purchase transactions and free bulk payments, among other benefits.

The last five years have seen Retail Capital establish itself as a prominent FinTech partner, giving businesses instant access to funding through embedded solutions. They will continue to support the economy through innovative funding technology and strong partner relationships.

The two businesses are also economically complementary and synergistic. Retail Capital’s product offering to small businesses requires a flexible source of low-cost capital, which TymeBank’s deposit base can provide. Through its multi-country digital banking presence, Tyme Group will also enable Retail Capital’s international expansion into other markets.

“Retail Capital has a long history of supporting SMEs by enabling them to access affordable funding that helps their businesses grow. Now, through this acquisition by TymeBank, we will be able to scale the offering, giving SMEs the opportunity to expand through funding that works on their terms. Retail Capital already powers many industry-leading partners in the Acquiring, Retail and Payments space to support their SME customers and the tie-up with TymeBank will further enhance this offering to our partners’ customers,” said Retail Capital’s CEO Karl Westvig. “Both Retail Capital and TymeBank have the customer front of mind, and we see the strategic move as a positive one that will greatly assist all business owners in South Africa.”

TymeBank’s business customers benefit from the launch of a new offering, TymePOS, a mobile point-of-sale app that turns an NFC-enabled cellphone into a tap-and-go payment device. As a softpos solution, TymePOS offers pricing in the market for merchants of this size. TymeTrybe, a financial community platform that equips business owners with a comprehensive range of business tools, accredited courses and other educational services, as well as access to networking opportunities, will be a crucial feature of TymeBank’s expanded Business Banking offering.

“It’s exciting to know that visionary banks like TymeBank, along with our partners such as Meta, Wits and SMEasy, share our vision to take a more holistic look at the amazing people at the heart of our business communities. This is a momentous step in our journey to create community-oriented B2B banking for every size and type of SME around the world,” said Mo Harvey, Founder and CEO of Tribe Fintech.

“The small business sector in this country is vital to economic development and job creation and deserves all the help it can get, particularly given the immense hardship of the last few years. We believe our revitalised business banking offering is what small business owners want, need and deserve,” said Jonker.