Banks in South Africa

South Africa’s banking system comprises 11 locally controlled banks, 3 foreign controlled banks, 4 mutual banks, 11 branches of foreign banks and 30 representative offices of foreign banks, according to the registers maintained by the South African Reserve Bank’s Prudential Authority (2025–2026). Co-operative banks are registered separately and are not included in these registers.

Absa Bank – A leading South African bank. It operates as the South African banking subsidiary of Absa Group Limited, which serves more than 12 million clients and is listed on the JSE under the share code ABG.

African Bank – A South African bank headquartered in Midrand. Originally an unsecured personal lender, it broadened into business banking after acquiring Grindrod Bank Limited and Grindrod Financial Holdings from Grindrod Limited in a transaction finalised on 1 November 2022.

Al Baraka Bank – The pioneer of Islamic banking in South Africa. It operates as a subsidiary of the Bahrain-based Al Baraka Banking Group.

Barclays Africa Group – The name under which Absa Group Limited traded between 2013 and 2018. Following Barclays plc’s sell-down of its shareholding the group reverted to the Absa Group Limited name, under which it is listed on the JSE with the share code ABG; it remains one of Africa’s largest financial services groups, with banking operations in South Africa and across the continent.

Bidvest Bank – A leading foreign exchange specialist in South Africa. It focuses on all major currencies through a correspondent global network.

Capitec Bank Holdings – A commercial bank headquartered in Stellenbosch. As of October 25, 2017, it had a market capitalization of ZAR 108 billion (US$7.9 billion).

FirstRand Group – One of the largest financial institutions in the country. It includes FirstRand Bank, First National Bank, Rand Merchant Bank and WesBank. As of December 1, 2017, the Group had a market capitalization of ZAR 317 billion (US$23 billion).

First National Bank (FNB) is the oldest bank in South Africa established in 1838. It operates as a subsidiary of FirstRand Group.

Grindrod Bank (GRDB) – Formerly a South African corporate and investment bank serving private, corporate and institutional customers. Grindrod Limited sold its interests in Grindrod Bank Limited and Grindrod Financial Holdings to African Bank Limited in a transaction finalised on 1 November 2022, and the bank has since been absorbed into African Bank; it is no longer separately registered as a bank in South Africa.

HBZ Bank – A wholly owned subsidiary of Habib Bank AG Zurich. It was launched in 1995 and maintains branches in Kwa-Zulu Natal and Gauteng. HBZ has a division specializing in Islamic banking.

Investec Bank Ltd is a focused specialist bank and asset management company. It provides investment, corporate and private banking services.

Mercantile Bank Holdings – Formerly an investment holding company that provided international and domestic banking services to retail and corporate customers through its subsidiaries Mercantile Bank and Mercantile Insurance Brokers, and that was owned by Portugal’s Caixa Geral de Depósitos S.A. Mercantile Bank was acquired by Capitec Bank and its business now trades as Capitec Business; the Mercantile Bank name is no longer in use and Mercantile appears on none of the South African Reserve Bank’s registers of banks.

Momentum Group Limited (previously MMI Holdings, and later Momentum Metropolitan) – A South African financial services group providing insurance, savings, asset management, investments, healthcare administration and employee benefits through the Momentum, Metropolitan, Guardrisk and Eris Properties brands.

Nedbank Group – One of South Africa’s largest banking groups. It offers a wide range of wholesale and retail banking services, wealth management and insurance products, and is listed on the JSE. Old Mutual Limited unbundled its majority shareholding in Nedbank to its own shareholders in October 2018, and Nedbank is no longer a subsidiary of the Old Mutual group.

Rand Merchant Bank (RMB) – The investment banking arm of the FirstRand Group and one of the leading corporate and investment banks in Africa.

Sasfin Bank – Formerly a niche South African bank headquartered in Waverley, serving individuals and businesses with a focus on corporate clients and high net worth individuals. Sasfin voluntarily relinquished its banking licence to the South African Reserve Bank on 30 June 2026 and the cancellation of the licence was gazetted on 17 July 2026; Sasfin Bank Limited is converting from a public to a private company to be renamed Sasfin (Pty) Ltd.

South African Reserve Bank – The central bank of the RSA. It maintains that South Africa has a growing economy based on the principles of a market system, private and social initiative, effective competition and social fairness.

Standard Bank Group – The largest bank in South Africa by assets and earnings. It is a full-service financial group with operations in 20 African countries. Its total assets were ZAR 1.95 trillion at 30 June 2017; the group published its 2026 interim results on 13 August 2026.

Ubank Ltd (formerly Teba Bank) – A South African bank that operated in the microfinance sector, primarily within the gold and platinum mining communities. The Minister of Finance, in consultation with the Prudential Authority, placed Ubank under curatorship on 16 May 2022, and the bank no longer appears on the South African Reserve Bank’s registers of banks.

United Bank – Allied Bank, United Bank and Volkskas Bank stop trading under their own names, from this point they all trade under the name "ABSA".

WesBank – The largest provider of vehicle finance in South Africa, financing 1 in 3 new cars sold. The company operates as a division of FirstRand Bank.

See also:  Foreign Banks in South Africa, Insurance Companies

Top Banks in South Africa

Below is a list of the largest banks operating in South Africa. The Big Four banks hold over 80% of banking services in the country.

Total Assets (ZAR billion)

* Absa Bank Ltd is a wholly owned subsidiary of Absa Group Limited, which was named Barclays Africa Group between 2013 and 2018.

Other Registered Banks

The following institutions hold current South African banking registrations and are not covered by the listing above. All appear on the registers maintained by the South African Reserve Bank’s Prudential Authority.

Access Bank (South Africa) Limited – The South African member of the Access Bank group of Nigeria. It is entered on the Prudential Authority’s register of foreign controlled banks.

Bank Zero Mutual Bank – A digital mutual bank, entered on the Prudential Authority’s register of mutual banks as at August 2026.

Discovery Bank Limited – A retail bank within the Discovery group, entered on the Prudential Authority’s register of locally controlled banks as at 7 July 2026.

GoTyme Bank Limited – A digital bank trading as TymeBank, entered on the Prudential Authority’s register of locally controlled banks as at 7 July 2026.

OM Bank Limited – The banking arm of the Old Mutual group, entered on the Prudential Authority’s register of locally controlled banks as at 7 July 2026.