Eight months after telling TechCentral it was readying the launch of a mobile virtual network operator, Absa is giving very little away about how those plans are progressing – or when South Africans can expect to see an Absa-branded Sim card.
Last October, Nick Nkosi, Absa’s managing executive for transactional and deposits at Absa Group, said in an exclusive interview that the bank had spent six months researching what it would take to convince customers to switch to an Absa MVNO.
He acknowledged at the time that the bank was “late to the party” compared with its rivals, but said Absa wanted to lead with a unique, app-centred, family-orientated offering rather than rush to market.
Asked by TechCentral this week for an update on that timeline – including whether a launch date has been set, whether Absa has settled on a mobile network partner and what might set its offering apart – the bank gave a markedly more guarded response than the one it offered eight months ago.
“Absa continuously explores opportunities to create more value-added services for our customers through seamless and convenient experiences,” said Nkosi. “As part of our broader value-added services, we are assessing models in the MVNO space to understand how this could enhance our value proposition and strengthen everyday banking experiences for our customers.
‘Deliberate’
“Our approach is deliberate, insight-led and informed by extensive customer research to ensure any future proposition adds meaningful value to our customers. We will share further details in due course through our formal channels,” he said.
Notably, the response stops short of confirming that an MVNO launch is still planned at all, describing the project instead as something the bank is “assessing”. Absa did not address any of TechCentral’s specific questions about a launch date, a network partner or a differentiating proposition.
Read: The trap inside South Africa’s banking MVNO boom
If and when Absa does launch, it will be entering a market in which several of its biggest rivals have had a head-start of years, not months.
Standard Bank was the first to dabble in the space, originally launching what became Standard Bank Mobile on Cell C’s MVNX platform before rebranding to Standard Bank Connect in 2024 and migrating to a carrier-direct deal with MTN.
FNB Connect, which runs on Cell C’s network, and Standard Bank Connect are both well established and, along with Capitec Connect, are described by industry analysts as dominating the banking MVNO segment in terms of customers and revenue. Capitec Connect leads the pack by a wide margin, with 1.5 million active customers as of the end of February 2026.
Nedbank is the most recent of the big four to enter the market, launching Nedbank Connect – on MTN’s network – in September 2025 with aggressively priced, contract-free plans starting at R169/month, group plans for up to 10 Sims, and Greenbacks rewards integration.
Read: After mobile, Capitec Connect eyes home broadband push
That leaves Absa as the last of South Africa’s major banks still without a mobile offering – a gap Nkosi himself acknowledged in October, saying Absa didn’t want to enter “just because other banks are doing it” but rather to offer something genuinely differentiated, built around its banking app and aimed at families managing multiple Sims centrally. – © 2026 NewsCentral Media
