Standard Bank has confirmed that it will roll out new smartcard IDs at branches countrywide, as announced by the Minister of Home Affairs, Malusi Gigaba, earlier this week.
Sibongiseni Ngundze, head of retail banking at Standard Bank, says: “We always aim to put our customer at the heart of our operation. This form of public and private collaboration marks a move to cement our strategy of becoming a truly innovative customer-centric institution that looks outside of traditional business boundaries to meet the ever-changing needs of our customers.
“Standard Bank has 650 branches nationwide, and with this extensive footprint, it puts Standard Bank in a strong position to assist government with reaching its goals. Not only is it an extremely convenient way to aid and deliver this crucial service to South Africans, but it will also be safer, quicker and more efficient.”
Standard Bank will commence its pilot with staff next month. Existing customers will be able to apply for their new smartcard IDs from Standard Bank as of April 2015. This isn’t the first time Standard Bank is rolling out a project of this scale. The bank successfully implemented a similar service to customers in Mozambique, in co-operation with the Mozambican government.
“As we are in a pilot phase, we will be starting the process with our commercial and business banking customers as well as our prestige and private banking customers. The pilot will run for six months, followed by a roll out to all customers. We are committed to rolling out this initiative as quickly as possible,” Ngundze says.
Standard Bank customers will be invited by appointment to come and enrol for their new smartcard ID. The entire process will be handled by the Department of Home Affairs, which will have a dedicated office at the bank. Customers will be able to have their photographs taken; fingerprints verified and pay for the new card all at this central office, making the process as seamless as possible.
Customers will be able to collect their new smartcard IDs from Standard Bank’s offices in Rosebank or Simmonds Street in Johannesburg. Customers will be able to collect their smartcard IDs within 10 working days. Due to safety and security reasons, customers will need to collect their cards in person.
“This is the biggest step towards ensuring that all South Africans are empowered to obtain their legal documents in an efficient and convenient way. We are pleased to be partnering with the Government to fill this important mandate and with our knowledge from previous projects, we are sure it will be a great success,” Ngundze says.
