GoTyme Bank, the Gokongwei digital lender jointly owned with Singapore’s Tyme Group, reported acquiring an estimated 250,000 new customers a month the past three months, allowing it to report over 2.3 million customers only 14 months from when they first conducted business.
This was better than Tyme Group’s South Africa operations on a like for like basis which acquired 1.6 million customers in the same timespan.
“We see this as further validation that our unique retail distribution model is a major accelerator in building a sustainable digital bank. This gives us even more confidence that GoTyme is on the right track to build one of largest retail banks in the country and fulfill its mission of unlocking the financial potential of all Filipinos,” GoTyme CEO Nate Clarke said.
Tyme attributes its success and growth potential to its unique sales and service model, which is a combination of digital and human engagement integrated into physical retail ecosystems. In the Philippines, GoTyme’s model was met with higher-than-expected demand, the bank said.
“A society that has only recently begun to embrace digital banking alternatives, Filipinos associate convenient and efficient customer service with direct interactions with people rather than chatbots—a need that GoTyme Bank fulfills by offering access to physical kiosks and banking ambassadors in partnership with partners and retailers nationwide,” the lender said.
It forecasts that by 2027, 32 percent of Filipinos will have embraced digital banking.
The lender also reported annualized revenue run rate of USD160 million last year and its flagship South African relative TymeBank rated the world’s fastest profitable standalone digital bank.
TymeBank said it counts among the top 5 percent of digital banks globally. Its South African operations also qualify as one of the world’s fastest-growing digital banks having secured 8.5 million customers since its launch in February 2019 and achieving 30 percent growth of its SME lending portfolio in 2023.
“We are proud of our growth in emerging markets as we bring critical financial access to individuals and businesses. These markets are significantly underserved compared to more established markets, representing enormous growth opportunities for Tyme Group,” Coenraad Jonker, Tyme co-founder and executive chairman, said.
