Postbank banking licence could take up to three years, says Malatsi - IOL
Postbank’s bid for a full commercial banking licence could take up to three years to complete, with the bank still needing to meet key governance, regulatory and capital requirements.
This was revealed by Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies Solly Malatsi in a written parliamentary reply after African National Congress (ANC) MP Shaik Imraan Subrathie asked about the status of the licensing process, the potential impact on social grant payments and measures to prevent further payment failures.
Malatsi said the establishment of Postbank’s bank controlling company and the appointment of its board were underway, but the bank still needed to be recapitalised to meet prudential capital requirements and support the modernisation of its technology and infrastructure.
"Postbank's application for a full commercial banking licence is progressing in terms of Section 12 of the Banks Act, 1990. The process remains dependent on the completion of several regulatory, governance and capitalisation requirements," Malatsi said.
He said this includes the establishment and operationalisation of the Postbank bank controlling company, the appointment of its board and the finalisation of related shareholder governance arrangements.
It also includes the recapitalisation of Postbank to meet prudential capital requirements and support the modernisation of its technology and infrastructure, as well as the completion of institutional and operational readiness requirements.
Malatsi said the bank also needed to close the remaining regulatory conditions issued by the Prudential Authority.
"Recapitalisation remains a key requirement for the banking licence process. Postbank has, through the Department, requested shareholder capital support for consideration by National Treasury during the 2027/2028 MTEF period," he added.
"The recapitalisation is necessary to meet regulatory capital adequacy requirements and to support the implementation of Postbank's banking infrastructure strategy".
Malatsi said Postbank expected the licensing process to take between two and three years once the outstanding requirements had been addressed and the necessary regulatory approvals secured.
Turning to social grants, he said the government was working to ensure payments continued without disruption.
"Postbank and SASSA continue to work together to ensure that grant payments are not disrupted during the card replacement process.These measures are intended to safeguard continued access to social grant payments while the card replacement programme is being finalised and ongoing engagements regarding the MSA are concluded."
