Patrice Motsepe’s Tyme Bank, Sanlam to launch retail credit venture

Key Points

• TymeBank will acquire 50% of Sanlam’s retail lending unit, marking a strategic push into unsecured credit for low-access consumers in South Africa.
• The R751.5 million ($42.04 million) venture includes loan book transfer, equity stake, and shared insurance profit, blending digital reach with underwriting strength.
• The co-branded JV aims to scale affordable loans and credit life products via TymeBank’s digital platform and Sanlam’s lending infrastructure.

Tyme Bank, the digital banking group backed by Africa’s first Black billionaire Patrice Motsepe, has entered into a strategic retail credit joint venture with Sanlam Life, a subsidiary of Africa’s largest non-banking financial services group, Sanlam. 

The agreement, valued at approximately R751.5 million ($42.04 million), will launch a retail credit joint venture aimed at expanding access to credit for underserved South Africans with a focus on unsecured personal loans and credit life products.

Expanding a digital credit footprint

According to the SENS announcement today, Sanlam’s unsecured lending arm, Sanlam Personal Loans (SPL), will create a new registered credit provider entity, which will take over SPL’s loan origination business. 

Tyme Bank will acquire 50 percent of the new venture for R31.5 million ($1.76 million) and purchase half of SPL’s existing retail credit loan book for an estimated R400 million (22.38 million), plus the capital value. Additionally, Tyme Bank will subscribe to a Reference Share for R320 million ($17.91 million), securing a 50 percent stake in the credit life insurance profits of the JVCo.

SPL, which offers unsecured loans of R5,000 ($279.81) to R300,000 ($16,789) over 12 to 72 months at fixed interest rates, held a loan book of R5 billion ($279.88 million) as of Dec. 2024. The newly formed joint venture will originate and administer these loans under the Sanlam-Tyme Bank brand, targeting digitally savvy consumers in need of affordable personal credit.

Strategic alignment and empowerment

The transaction represents a deepening of ties between Sanlam and the Motsepe-led UBI group. In 2024, Sanlam acquired a 25 percent stake in ARC Financial Services Holdings (ARC FSH)—the same company that holds an indirect 46 percent stake in Tyme Bank—underscoring Sanlam’s commitment to inclusive, black-owned financial services development in South Africa.

To meet governance requirements, Sanlam has secured a fairness opinion from Deloitte & Touche, which found the transaction equitable to shareholders. Approval was also granted by an independent committee of Sanlam’s non-executive directors.

Tyme Bank’s strategic ties with Sanlam

Tyme Bank, a fully digital institution, backed by Motsepe’s Ubuntu-Botho Investments (UBI), with over 11 million customers and a network of 800 self-service kiosks across 15,000 retail points, will leverage its robust tech infrastructure to support the joint venture. The new partnership combines Sanlam’s lending expertise with Tyme Bank’s agile, digital-first distribution and risk management capabilities.

The proposed transaction remains subject to regulatory approvals, including from the Prudential Authority and Competition Authorities, and is expected to close before the longstop date of 31 March 2026. With this joint venture, Sanlam and Tyme Bank aim to scale a competitive, digitally driven unsecured lending platform capable of offering integrated loan and insurance solutions to a broader customer base across South Africa.