Capitec Bank, South Africa’s biggest commercial bank by customer base, has increased salaries across its workforce to attract top talent and sustain its high-performance culture amid rising competition for skilled professionals in the financial sector.
In its 2024 remuneration report, the Capitec Bank revealed a shift in employee pay scales over the past three years. The number of employees earning between R250,000 ($13,268) and R500,000 ($26,536) annually has tripled, now accounting for 62% of the workforce.
The move mirrors broader efforts by South African banks to retain skilled staff. Absa and Standard Bank have increased their minimum salaries for 2025. Absa raised its minimum pay to R250,000 ($13,268) annually, 8.7% higher than last year. Standard Bank also increased its minimum salary to R258,390 ($13,731) per year, with unionised employees getting an average 5.8% salary boost.
The shift is also a response to macroeconomic trends. According to the payroll consultancy Axiomatic, salaries in South Africa are expected to rise by 5.5% in 2025, slightly above inflation. The share of employees earning between R180,000 ($9,550) and R250,000 ($13,268) has fallen sharply—from 61% in 2021 to just 16%—while those earning under R180,000 ($9,550) now make up only 2%, mostly interns and entry-level hires.
“Fairness is reflected in the way that we structure pay for executives and higher earners. At this level, we manage fairness by a higher weighting of pay towards variable pay,” said Vusi Mahlangu, chair of the bank’s remuneration committee.
10% of Capitec employees now earn over R1 million (over $53,000) annually. The bank has also invested heavily in its tech talent base, increasing its IT salary budget by 28% to R1.7 million (about $90,200). That helped boost the proportion of staff earning between R500,000 ($26,536) and R1.5 million (about $79,600) from 11% in 2021 to 17% in 2024.
Capitec has also focused on talent retention, with 63% of positions filled internally and a voluntary resignation rate of just 11.6%, well below the South African banking sector average of 15.6%.
The bank’s strong financial performance drove the salary raises. Net profit rose 30% to R13.7 billion (over $728 million) in 2024, driven by expansion into new segments like business banking, insurance, and digital financial services. Capitec has also attracted a more affluent customer base, with a 27% increase in clients earning R50,000 (about $2,650) monthly.
The salary raises come as the bank undergoes a leadership change. Chief executive Gerrie Fourie has led Capitec for 25 years and is stepping down. He earned R104.8 million (over $5.5 million) last year, including R75 million (over $3,9 million) in long-term incentives, and holds one million Capitec shares valued at roughly R3.3 billion (over $175 million). Though retiring as CEO, he will continue to advise the bank on its international expansion plans.
