South Africa’s GoTyme Bank makes all 2,000 staff shareholders

GoTyme Bank, the Philippines-based digital lender, has opened share ownership to its entire 2,000-person workforce. It started running education sessions to walk staff through the scheme and its potential value.

The bank has more than 21 million customers across South Africa and the Philippines. It is majority-owned by Patrice Motsepe’s African Rainbow Capital Investments and runs a joint venture with the Philippines’ Gokongwei Group, with additional backing from China’s Tencent.

GoTyme is notable for being Africa’s first profitable standalone digital bank, and was valued at $1.5 billion in 2024 after a fundraising round that included a $150 million investment from Nubank, Latin America’s most valuable financial company. The equity move comes as the bank builds toward a public listing.

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The employee ownership offer extends across all levels of the company and all its operating markets — South Africa, the Philippines, and its newer Southeast Asian footholds in Vietnam and Indonesia. GoTyme is adding roughly 450,000 new clients per month, and CEO Cheslyn Jacobs has said the bank will post a record profit for the financial year ending June 2026.

The lender’s revenue grew from $15.76 million in 2021 to $32.38 million in 2024. That translates to a 85.25% compound annual growth rate, which ranked it 23rd on the Financial Times’ 2026 Africa’s Fastest-Growing Companies list.

Last updated: May 15, 2026