Banking and financial services

TymeBank is spreading its wings.

The Competition Tribunal has unconditionally approved TymeBank’s purchase of Retail Capital, a fintech SMME funder.

TymeBank, which is majority owned by Patrice Motsepe’s African Rainbow Capital, has been moving beyond its basic banking model recently and this purchase indicates another broadening of the scope of the bank’s ambitions. Having run banking kiosks within Pick n Pay and Boxer stores for several years, TymeBank has also signed a deal with TFG, a group that has a big presence in KwaZulu-Natal.

What used to be known as the Foschini Group has 34 brands, including Markhams, Totalsports, Jet and Dial a Bed, and 30-million customers. In the short term, TymeBank will have access to 600 TFG kiosks, taking the bank’s total in South Africa to 1 450.

The launch by Sanlam Investments of a Sustainable Infrastructure Fund is a sign of the times. The South African state and the Provincial Government of KwaZulu-Natal has promised a huge infrastructure drive but in the context of climate change caused by the use of fossil fuels, the investment community is increasingly putting emphasis on sustainability.

The Brics New Development Bank has made a $200-million loan for the expansion of the container terminal in Durban. The busy port is currently stretched beyond capacity and waiting time for trucks can be extremely long.

Activist groups in Durban’s southern suburbs are opposing the loan and the expansion, saying that further development will increase pollution in the area and lead to even more dangerous traffic congestion.

Up the coast at Richards Bay, the World Bank’s International Finance Corporation (IFC) has committed $2-million to a feasibility study on the construction of a liquefied natural gas (LNG) storage and regasification terminal. The study’s costs are shared with Transnet and a private investor will be sought if the feasibility study is positive.

Aspen Pharmacare is a speciality pharmaceuticals company with a presence in more than 50 countries and nearly 9 000 employees. The company’s headquarters are in La Lucia Ridge north of Durban. Aspen’s decision to register a second listing on one of South Africa’s

Online Resources

Association for Savings and Investment South Africa: www.asisa.org.za

Financial Sector Conduct Authority: www.fsca.co.za

South African Institute for Chartered Accountants: www.saica.co.za

Sector Insight

Sustainability has a financial component.

newest stock exchanges (the primary listing remains on the JSE) was a boost for A2X, which set out to attract secondary listings.

Of the four new exchanges that South Africa has seen since 2017, ZARX has been suspended and 4AX has rebranded as the Cape Town Stock Exchange. Equity Express Securities Exchange (EESE) trades in Black Economic Empowerment (BEE).

Together with real estate and general business, the financial sector in KwaZuluNatal accounts for 18% of gross domestic product (GDP). ■