South Africa's largest retail bank, Absa, this week became the first bank in the country to reach one million internet banking users.

"This is a significant milestone and we are delighted so many clients recognise the convenience and security of our electronic banking options," says Steve Booysen, Absa Group Chief Executive.

"We have made substantial investments in innovation, to ensure our customers enjoy state-of-the-art internet and cellphone banking facilities that are available anywhere, any time," he said.

In 1996, Absa became the first South African bank to offer an internet banking service, and was the only bank in the country to offer internet access to its customers back in 2001. The bank has always been at the forefront of internet technologies.

Growth in users accelerating

Alfie Naidoo, Absa's executive director of Retail Banking, says: "We are seeing the growth in users accelerating more sharply now than it was a couple of years ago. Evidently, customers enjoy the speed, convenience and control they have with Internet Banking."

Absa now has over 150 000 small businesses using its business internet banking service, he adds.

"In the past 12 months, the total value of the transactions processed by our internet banking service is over R660-billion," says Naidoo.

"We are constantly enhancing the service, enabling more features and functionalities. Earlier this year we made it possible for people to instantly create new Savings and Investment accounts, with just three clicks of the mouse, for instance."

World-class banking service

Absa's internet banking has been recognised as a world-class banking service by leading international ratings agencies and analysts, including Forrester, Lafferty, PricewaterhouseCoopers, and The Online Banking Report.

Internet banking is complemented by Absa's cellphone banking services – which allow people anywhere in South Africa, with any type of handset, to do almost all their banking from the palm of their hand.

"We actively encourage those clients who have not yet done so, to sign up and use our internet banking facilities. Not only will they find it wonderfully convenient but it will also result in significant savings in bank charges and fees," Booysen says.

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