Some refreshing news today is coming from FNB who have announced plans to open 50 new branches in local communities by 2023. A clear sign of its growing investment in SA, FNB says this is part of its efforts to be accessible to its Retail and Commercial customers across the country. The community branches will be between 70 – 90m2 in size with the design set to integrate world-class technologies to heighten customer experience by blending self-service and face-to-face interactions.
Jacques Celliers, FNB CEO says, “In the last 3 years, we’ve opened 14 new branches and revamped over 130 to cater to customer needs via assisted and unassisted channels. In our points of presence, our aim is to ensure that the right services are available within proximity to our customers. As a result, we have maintained consistent investment in our vast network spanning nearly 600 branches and approximately 5 000 ATMs in local markets across South Africa.”
Lee-Anne van Zyl, CEO of FNB Points of Presence says “Our branches and ATMs serve a meaningful purpose to our customers, communities, and brand. We strive to provide reliable, accessible, and contextual services to help our customers manage their money. The introduction of new branches will be supported by ongoing refurbishments, with a further 53 branches scheduled for upgrades in the short-to-medium-term.”
This is great news for customers as FNB’s branch network play an important role in the provision of essential services beyond banking. One of these include the Bank’s efforts to help the Department of Home Affairs with the distribution of Smart IDs and passports at selected branches, a service that is available at various branches including Portside (Cape Town), Centurion Lifestyle (Pretoria), Merchant Place (Sandton Johannesburg), Lynnwood (Pretoria), Burgersfort (Limpopo), The Glen (Johannesburg) and Cornubia (KwaZulu-Natal).
Since inception, over 267 800 Smart ID cards and passports have been issued to customers in partnership with Home Affairs. Customers in provinces where the service is available can apply via the online system of the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) to collect their Smart IDs and Passports at a participating FNB branch.
