What the Numbers Say About Banking Loyalty
The eBucks Benchmark
R24 Billion
FNB has paid out R24 billion in eBucks rewards over 25 years. R2.1 billion in the last financial year alone. Travel sales grew to R1.4 billion, up 16% year on year. But eBucks is not a rewards programme. It is a product-holding engine. The more products a customer holds, the higher their eBucks level. That is why eBucks members hold an average of 3.2 products versus 1.4 for non-members.
Yet 2025 showed the fragility. Tier-point cuts, partner removals (iStore, Shoprite replaced by Pick n Pay), and forced product uptake triggered public backlash. When a cost-driven rewards programme shifts from rewarding existing behaviour to demanding new behaviour, loyalty erodes fast.
The Capitec Disruption
92% Penetration
Capitec has 25 million clients, 60% retail banking market share, and 92% of those clients are enrolled in Live Better. No sign-up friction. No points. Real cashback paid into an interest-bearing savings account. Hyper-personalised campaigns via WhatsApp deliver 70% read rates, 40% click-through, and 20-40% conversion. A team of 6 runs the business side. 28 engineers build the technology.
The Dis-Chem partnership gives Capitec clients 15% off at 140+ brands. Live Better Day on the 10th of every month has become a second payday. Clients use it for taxi fares, hair appointments, school fees. That is loyalty that solves real problems.
The Post-Loyalty Crisis
10.3 Programmes
South African consumers now juggle an average of 10.3 active loyalty programmes, up from 3.6 a decade ago. 82% of economically active consumers participate. But 77% admit loyalty programmes influence where they buy groceries. Programmes designed to foster retention are accelerating churn.
Nedbank Greenbacks offers up to 2% cashback and partner discounts. But the real competition is Capitec, which bypasses points entirely. In mass markets, cash is king. Points are a liability. The bank that gives R10 back today beats the one that promises 500 points redeemable in 60 days.
The Dormancy Drain
40-60% Dormant
Most retail banks report that 40-60% of open accounts are dormant or low-activity. These accounts cost money to maintain and generate no fee income. A reactivation reward, a dining pass for three transactions this month, a fuel voucher for setting up a new debit order, is cheaper than acquiring a new customer.
Capitec's headline earnings grew 30% to R13.7 billion for FY2025 and surged 26% in H1 to R8 billion with 25 million clients. The banks growing fastest are the ones turning dormant accounts into active relationships through value, not fees.
The Savings Behaviour Gap
60%+ No Savings
In South Africa, more than 60% of adults have no formal savings. Banks offer savings accounts. Customers open them. Then nothing happens. A guaranteed reward for reaching a savings milestone, R100 in groceries when your balance hits R1,000, changes the equation.
Capitec's Live Better savings feature rounds up purchases and sweeps the difference into a savings account automatically. M-Pesa processes KSh 20.2 trillion in transactions with 60 million customers. The mobile-money infrastructure exists. The rewards layer does not. That is the gap.
AM
Founder, TUZO | Africa's Lifestyle Rewards Platform
10,000+ reward partners across 23 African countries, the UK and UAE. Clients and pilots include MSD, Vodacom, MTN, Lactalis, Safaricom, Nedbank, Old Mutual and ABSA.