Since the start of the Coronavirus pandemic, almost 90 percent of South Africans have expressed their inclinations towards contactless solutions. Consequently, with the interest in contactless technologies rising as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, and with 75 percent of South Africans mentioning hygiene as a major reason for switching to contactless payments, IDEMIA has formed a partnership with TymeBank. The alliance is aimed at working together to meet South Africa’s need for a contactless payment solution.
TymeBank, South Africa’s first digital bank, now has more than 2.5 million customers on its books since its launch in February 2019. The bank operates self-service kiosks situated in Boxer and Pick ‘n Pay stores all over South Africa. Through these self-service kiosks, customers can open an account by providing their national identity numbers for verification purposes.
Also, TymeBank can issue debit cards through the self-service kiosks once customers complete the onboarding process. The cards come with contactless capabilities and are produced by IDEMIA EMV. Through these contactless payment cards, customers can complete transactions without touching a shared device or entering a PIN.
According to Cheslyn Jacobs, TymeBank’s Head of Sales and Service; “We equip our customers with a contactless EMV bank card that delivers a safe payment experience in a secure and convenient manner. This is true to our ethos of ensuring that banking is made accessible to everyone in South Africa.”
Apart from TymeBank, IDEMIA also offers card solutions to other financial organisations in South Africa. In more recent times, the company has been pushing the production of eco-friendly cards produced from recycled PVC materials or metal.
According to Julia Schoonenberg, a Senior Vice President at IDEMIA MEA; “IDEMIA has a proven track record of working with banking customers in both physical and digital spaces. We are proud to support TymeBank in their mission to enhance convenience and security for people in South Africa.”
Another angle to the partnership between TymeBank and IDEMIA is fraud prevention. Both companies hope that the card distribution can deter fraud, which has been on the rise in South Africa with fraudsters trying to make the most of the COVID-19 situation.
