Capitec, South Africa’s largest bank by client numbers, has officially changed its name from Capitec Bank Holdings Limited to Capitec Limited.
The Prudential Authority published the notice in the Government Gazette on 2 October 2026. It was done in line with the Banks Act of 1990.
“Capitec Bank Holdings Limited, registered as a controlling company in terms of section 44 of the Banks Act, changed its name to Capitec Limited with effect from 1 August 2026,” the gazette said.
The new name was first announced in August 2026. This followed the group’s annual general meeting on 31 July, according to newsday.co.za.
Capitec said the change shows its plan to grow beyond normal banking. The company wants to offer more financial and customer services.
“Indicative of our journey beyond traditional banking is the recent name change from Capitec Bank Holdings Limited to Capitec Limited,” the company said.
“This reflects our growing focus on delivering a wider range of value-adding solutions to our clients,” Capitec added.
The group already offers Smart ID services at 248 of its branches. It aims to bring this service to all of its branches.
Capitec said this showed its commitment to being more than a bank. It said the extra services were meant to give its clients more value.
The company also plans to launch new stokvel accounts. It wants to grow in the telecoms market through Capitec Connect.
Clients and shareholders will see little change. Capitec will keep trading on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange under the same share ticker.
The bank will also keep its focus on the emerging middle class. Its approach is built on low cost, easy access, personal service and simple products.
Capitec now has 26.6 million active clients. That makes it the biggest bank in South Africa by customer numbers.
It is also the most valuable single bank in the country, with a market value of R486 billion. Standard Bank follows closely at R480 billion.
FirstRand has a higher market value of R502 billion. However, FirstRand is a group of businesses and not a single bank.
Michiel le Roux and Riaan Stassen founded Capitec in 2001. The company listed on the JSE in February 2002.
The business first traded under the name Daxacom, which Le Roux suggested. The name did not prove popular.
Le Roux wanted a name that sounded ambitious and showed the bank was strong in technology. Smartfin founder Werner du Plessis then came up with Capitech, joining the words capital and technology.
The spelling did not look right on a whiteboard. Carl Fischer, chief executive of marketing and corporate affairs, crossed out the letter h, and the team settled on Capitec.
In 2023, Capitec was ranked the second strongest banking brand in Africa. In 2024, it was named the best at winning market share.
Source: this article is based on reporting by newsday.co.za. Image: newsday.co.za. Written with the help of AI and published by the Tzaneen Voice Business desk. See our Editorial Standards.
Anelisa Nkuna covers business and money news for Tzaneen Voice. Anelisa reports on the rand, fuel prices, interest rates, jobs, Eskom, Transnet, farming and company results. The aim is simple: explain what the numbers mean for household budgets, small businesses and workers in South Africa.