We’ve come a long way.
‘Our currency is a unique
symbol of our nationhood,
with many of us handling
banknotes every day.’
In line with international best practice, SARB aims to
upgrade or develop completely new banknote series
every seven years, incorporating new security, technical
and design features to ensure that the country’s money
remains among the safest currencies in the world.
The Mandela notes incorporate various high-tech
security features and the SARB maintains that they
are among the most difficult in the world to counterfeit.
“Look” security features include watermarks, see-through
print registration, micro-printing, unique numbering and a
security thread. “Feel” features include pronounced raised
printing, a different feel to previous series, and a feature
for visually impaired: one raised line on the R10 note, two
on the R20 note, and so on, up to five raised lines on the
R200 note. “Tilt” features include security thread, colourchanging ink for the denomination numerals, and hidden
images. They also make a different sound when snapped
between your fingers. Try it.
For more information visit www.resbank.co.za
Our new banknotes, with added security and pride.
Banked population up by 1.3 million
Finscope survey shows 67% banked
FinMark Trust’s FinScope South Africa 2012 survey results show an increase of 1.3 million people in South Africa’s banked population
since 2011. The annual FinScope survey has measured access to financial services among South African individuals for ten years.
Altogether there are now 22.5 million banked adults in South Africa, or 67% out of a total 16+ population of 33.7 million (StatsSA
2011 mid-year population estimate). There are now almost 10 million more adults in the banking system than in 2004, when 13 million
adults, or 46% of the population, were banked.
The survey found that the key banking development in 2012 was the roll-out of the new South African Social Security Agency
(SASSA) MasterCard. Three in four social grant holders, or 7.4 million, are now banked – up from 60% or 5 million in 2011. There is
further room for growth, with 7% or 2.4 million, of the adult population in South Africa being unbanked social grant holders.
Nine out of ten (88%) banked adults claim to withdraw money from an ATM at least once a month and 25% claim to get cash at a
store till using a bank card. Only 13% claim to use cellphone banking. The big challenge is to get people, including banked people, to
meaningfully engage financially by transacting frequently rather than withdrawing all their money at once. A third (34%) of the banked,
or 7.3 million people, agree with the statement ‘as soon as money is deposited into your account, you take all of it out’. There are
9.8 million people in South Africa who have basic transactional bank accounts and no other kind of formal financial product. ■
Edition 4
BANKER sa
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