Say goodbye to Capitec as you know it
Finance group Capitec says it is leaving behind the era of being just a bank, with a name change and a shift toward broader services as the old guard retires.
The group reported a significant rise in earnings for the six months ended 31 August 2026 (H1 2027), jumping 19% to R9.5 billion.
Net interest income for the group rose 7% to R12.73 billion, though this declined by 2% year-on-year to R6.98 billion after credit impairments (2025: R7.12 billion).
Non-net interest income shot up 21% to R16.1 billion, bringing the group’s total income from operations to R23.1 billion.
Operating expenses were recorded at R10.5 billion, giving the group an operating profit of R12.63 billion, up 21% from R10.47 billion in the comparative period.
Headline earnings per share increased by 19% to 8,262 cents, from 6,962 cents last year.
The group declared an interim ordinary dividend per share of 3,110 cents, up 19% from 2,620 cents in H1 2026.
Total equity increased by 16% to R62.47 billion from R53.8 billion in the comparative period.
Capitec said that its strong results for the period came despite the challenging operating conditions.
All of its South African businesses grew headline earnings, which it said was a testament to the strength of its fundamentals and the resilience of its diversified business model amid change.
Underpinning this, Capitec said it was becoming more than just a bank and has made a concerted effort to broaden its services to customers.
This includes the broadest rollout of Smart ID services across all banks, launching new stokvel accounts, and expanding into telecoms through Capitec Connect and into insurance with various products.
“Indicative of our journey beyond traditional banking is the recent name change from Capitec Bank Holdings Limited to Capitec Limited,” the group said.
“This reflects our growing focus on delivering a wider range of value-adding solutions to our clients.”
Dropping “bank” from its name signalled the change.
Since launching in March 2026, the finance group has processed over 594,000 Smart identification document applications, partnering with the Department of Home Affairs to strengthen national capacity.
The programme rollout has now expanded Smart ID access to 248 branches.
This “reflects our commitment to ‘being more than a bank’ by delivering value to our clients through services that make a tangible difference in their daily lives,” it said.
The bank launched the Capitec Stokvel Account, a digital savings account designed for groups who want to save together towards a shared goal.
The bank said there are approximately 800,000 stokvels in South Africa, with over 11 million members collectively contributing about R50 billion annually. It now has a product to serve them.
Capitec Connect continued to scale, it said with net income from Capitec Connect growing to R284 million (2025: R165 million).
The number of active clients in the past 3 months reached 1.8 million (2025: 1.1 million); data usage more than doubled from 14.9 petabytes to 34.3 petabytes; and voice usage grew by 84% from 311 million minutes to 573 million minutes.
In insurance, the Credit Life, Funeral and Life Cover offerings continue to improve efficiency and scale.
The number of active Credit Life policies increased to 2.2 million, and the in-force sum assured grew by 8%.
Lives assured by Capitec Funeral Cover grew by 8% to 17.1 million, while the in-force sum assured grew by 10% to R529 billion.
The Life Cover book continued to grow strongly, with the sum assured growing by 75% to R126 billion.
However, on the banking side, it remains committed to providing its customers with the best and most affordable service it can.
“For a second consecutive year, we did not increase any fees, and in some instances reduced them,” it said.
“This reflects our commitment to providing affordable banking and delivering meaningful value to our clients, reinforcing the long-term sustainability of our business.”
The group reached 25.7 million customers in South Africa, meaning it now banks more than a third of the population.
Farewell to the old guard
Highlighting the shift and transformation of Capitec is the sunsetting of the old guard at the finance group, as several founding and long-serving executives retire.
Former Capitec CEO Gerrie Fourie was the last ‘founder CEO’ of the group, who retired in July 2025.
While not a founder of the bank, Fourie had been a member of the Capitec executive management team from very early on and had overseen its large-scale growth after becoming CEO in 2014.
In June 2026, Capitec announced the retirement of Dr Chris Otto from its board, who had also worked with the group since its inception.
In its latest results, Capitec has announced the retirement of another stalwart: Henk Lourens, Executive: Strategic Initiatives, will leave at the end of November 2026 after 27 years.
Lourens served as head of Capitec’s acquisitions department when the bank was founded and later transitioned to operations manager.
“As a long-serving Executive, he has made a lasting contribution to the growth of the group, helping to shape both the business and its culture,” Capitec said.
“We extend our sincere thanks and best wishes as he embarks on his retirement.”
Loading ...