{"id":855641,"date":"2026-04-01T14:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-04-01T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/?p=855641"},"modified":"2026-04-01T14:06:04","modified_gmt":"2026-04-01T12:06:04","slug":"good-news-for-fnb-customers-in-south-africa-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/banking\/855641\/good-news-for-fnb-customers-in-south-africa-3\/","title":{"rendered":"Good news for FNB customers in South Africa"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>FNB is the latest bank to officially roll out new branches with Smart ID capabilities, adding four new branches that offer the service, with 16 more to open by the end of the month.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>FNB&#8217;s new branches that offer Smart ID capabilities add to the 77 Capitec branches and 30 Standard Bank branches that have started offering the service over the last couple of weeks. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The expansion of the pilot programme, which was launched by Home Affairs over a decade ago, gives banks greater control over the system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In the initial pilot, Home Affairs staff were seconded to bank branches, which limited the rollout to urban areas. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The new system gives banks greater access to Home Affairs&#8217; backend systems, with no requirement for Home Affairs to be present at the branch. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The new FNB branches that offer the service are all based in Gauteng, and do not require an appointment: <\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>FNB Woodmead Branch, Gauteng<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>FNB Lakeside Mall, Gauteng<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>FNB Krugersdorp, Gauteng<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>FNB Pretoria CBD, Gauteng<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>FNB will expand to 16 branches by the end of April 2026, building on the seven existing DHA-enabled branches from the initial pilot. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>FNB plans to scale the service to over 240 branches over the next year. FNB said that branch availability will be updated regularly on the FNB website and Banking App as additional locations are enabled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>During the initial phase, FNB customers will pay only the standard DHA application fee of R140, with no additional fees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThis expansion means more people can access Home Affairs services closer to home, making everyday admin simpler and more convenient,&#8221; said FNB&#8217;s new CEO, Lytania Johnson. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;By the end of April, we will have enabled 16 branches that deliver real help to communities by making important public services easier to access.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Nedbank, Absa, GoTyme Bank, African Bank and Discovery Bank are also set to offer Home Affairs services using the expanded service. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The department said that Absa and Nedbank are currently in varying stages of testing and are expected to go live once testing is complete.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;When compared to the existing 248 Home Affairs offices offering Smart ID services, the addition of 110 more service points constitutes a 44% service expansion in just three weeks,&#8221; the department said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;To date, more than 25,000 Smart ID applications have already been processed through participating bank branches, with the system processing applications at a rate of more than one per minute.&#8221; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The department said that the new model will also allow citizens to apply to replace their Green ID book or a lost Smart ID at participating bank branches in as little as five minutes, enabling them to avoid queues. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Home Affairs at Home <\/h2>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><a  data-lightbox=\"post-image\" href=\"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Leon-Schreiber-1600.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Leon-Schreiber-1600-1024x576.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-855364\" srcset=\"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Leon-Schreiber-1600-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Leon-Schreiber-1600-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Leon-Schreiber-1600-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Leon-Schreiber-1600-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Leon-Schreiber-1600.jpg 1600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Home Affairs Minister, Leon Schreiber<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p>This initiative also forms part of the Department&#8217;s Home Affairs @ Home reform programme, with the department looking to build a digital-first system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This will allow citizens to access government services online from the comfort of their own homes, rather than being forced to travel long distances and stand in long queues. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The new service will not require any prior booking or paperwork, and will be secured via cutting-edge fingerprint and facial recognition technology, the department said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Eliminating paper-based manual processes and official discretion, the application would also have greater protection against manipulation and fraud.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Home Affairs plans to reach 1,000 bank branches offering its services by 2029, with the rollout being done in a phased approach to ensure system stability and service quality. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThe rapid pace at which Home Affairs is fixing long-standing problems is a testament to the power of reform-minded leadership that embraces innovation,&#8221; said Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;Over the coming weeks, first-time Smart ID applications, Passport applications, secure courier delivery of IDs and Passports, as well as applications submitted via digital banking apps, will all become reality.&#8221; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>FNB has announced that four new branches now offer Smart ID services, with more opening by the end of the month. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":95,"featured_media":855327,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[961],"tags":[76,2524],"class_list":["post-855641","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-banking","tag-fnb","tag-home-affairs"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/855641","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/95"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=855641"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/855641\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":855656,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/855641\/revisions\/855656"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/855327"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=855641"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=855641"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=855641"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}