The bank has restored 98% of its branches and 88% of ATMs damaged during the unrest.
FNB is excited to announce the re-opening of its full-service branch at the Bridge City Shopping Centre in KwaMashu, KwaZulu-Natal. This is one of the branches that were severely damaged during the unrest in July 2021 and customers will be able to access a wide range of services from 5 April 2023.
Lee-Anne van Zyl, CEO of FNB Points of Presence, says, “We are pleased with the re-opening of our Bridge City branch in the community of KwaMashu. Branches that are in shopping malls require extensive collaboration with landlords, vendors, and communities, and we’re delighted to collectively reach this milestone. This is a continuation of our efforts to rebuild some of our branches and ATMs that were damaged during the unrest in parts of KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng. We’re delighted to maintain our strong presence in communities such as KwaMashu, which is one of the biggest townships in South Africa.”
“The opening of the Bridge City branch is crucial for the KwaZulu-Natal economy. The province has encountered several challenges in recent years, including natural disasters such as floods, so an investment of this magnitude is critical in rebuilding trust that KZN remains one of our country’s most important economic hubs. Most importantly, this expands access to our services for individuals and small businesses.” van Zyl continued.
FNB has been investing in its local market presence to be closer to customers, understand their context, and generate value for them. As part of this, it has announced plans to deploy over 300 community advisors in local markets and is on track to open 50 additional community branches. The deployment of community advisors is consistent with the bank’s initiatives to improve access to services and coincides with its commitment to supporting local community development.
“We are exploring a similar approach for business customers, and we want to establish business community advisors who can assist community-based SMEs with some of their financial needs. We’re now testing our approach in KwaZulu-Natal, and we hope to have a better understanding of the requirements in the coming months. While we have always had a strong presence in communities around the country, we believe there is much more we can do to assist individuals and small businesses,” explains van Zyl.
“Although most of our services are available through digital channels such as the FNB App, Online, and Cellphone Banking, our branches and ATMs play an essential role in our interactions with local communities,” concludes van Zyl.
Krush Harvest