South Africa’s new bank adding 2,100 new customers per day
OM bank, the new bank from Old Mutual, has seen its customer numbers rise to close to half a million in the first quarter of 2026.
Having spent billions to create the bank, OM Bank launched to the public in September 2025. Old Mutual Money Account customers were transitioned to OM Bank.
In an update to shareholders for Q1 2026, the group said progress was made on integrating Old Mutual Finance and OM Bank, with customer acquisition and deposit growth gaining traction.
Across the entire group, gross loans and advances were marginally higher than in the prior period. In the Old Mutual Banking cluster, Old Mutual Finance’s lending book was broadly stable year-on-year.
The group said this was part of deliberate actions to manage asset quality, such as right-sizing the non-performing loan portfolio and cautious lending in anticipation of macro-economic pressures.
The group said that OM Bank will launch its lending activities in the second half of the year.
The integration of Old Mutual Finance into OM Bank is expected to conclude by year-end, subject to the necessary governance and regulatory processes.
The group added that the cumulative number of customers for OM Bank increased significantly from 284,000 at 31 December 2025 to 473,000 in the first quarter.
This works out to an increase of 189,000 new customers during the quarter. With 90 days in Q1, this works out to 2,100 new customers per day on average.
It will also continue to roll out its value proposition to the market, with cumulative retail deposits also increasing to R541 million in Q1 2026 from R272 million recorded in Q4 2025.
This was due to an increase in savings deposits and the migration of money accounts. Management actions were primarily focused on boosting transactional activities.
Positive signs for Old Mutual
The rest of Old Mutual’s update saw strong improvements across sales. Life APE sales rose 28%, driven primarily by a large risk deal secured with Old Mutual Corporate.
Excluding the large deal, Life APE sales would have been up by 15% despite lower guaranteed annuity sales in Personal Finance.
Old Mutual Africa Regions further increased sales, generating higher retail and corporate new business.
For Old Mutual Insure, gross written premiums increased by 4%, driven by strong performance from Credit Guarantee Insurance Corporation, Genric Insurance Company, and ONE Financial Services Holdings.
Results from operations of R2.5 billion were largely in line with the prior period, despite ongoing pressure on customers and additional investment in OM Bank.
That said, the group noted that shareholder investment returns were significantly lower in the first quarter due to market volatility driven by geopolitical factors.
Looking ahead, South Africa’s outlook is generally positive, supported by the gradual improvement in fiscal position and ongoing reforms.
Inflation is also expected to increase in the near term due to high fuel prices and food inflation, which raises the risk of interest rate hikes.
The growth outlook also remains positive across Old Mutual Africa Regions, even if rising costs driven by the Iran conflict are expected to increase consumer inflation and weigh on topline and insurance margin growth.
The group said that it plans to continue to execute four strategies to generate growth over the medium to long term:
- Drive the competitiveness of the South African business
- Deepen market leadership in Southern Africa
- Establish the right to win for OM Bank
- Evaluate and pivot on growth markets
The group said that it remains on track to achieve its cost-saving commitment, with many actions to improve persistency and the quality of new business in Mass and Foundation progressing as planned.
“The ongoing pressure on customers’ disposable income and elevated cost of living creates headwinds to improvement,” it added.
“The observed rotation from guaranteed to market-linked annuities continues to exert pressure on new business margins.”
| Key Performance Indicators (R million) | 31 March 2026 | 31 March 2025 | % Change |
| Life APE sales ⁽¹⁾ | 3 732 | 2 919 | 28% |
| Gross written premiums | 7 503 | 7 448 | 1% |
| Gross flows ⁽¹⁾ | 60 008 | 52 469 | 14% |
| Net client cash flow ⁽¹⁾ | (3 180) | (5 396) | 41% |
| Gross loans and advances ⁽²⁾ | 19 486 | 19 259 | 1% |
⁽²⁾ The comparative amount reflects the 31 December 2025 balance sheet position, which has been re‑presented for consistency to reflect amounts previously classified within other receivables.
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