Temenos, the banking software company, announced that Barko, a leading microfinance company, plans to enter the retail banking market in South Africa with a new digital bank built on Temenos Transact and powered by The Temenos Banking Cloud. Barko will leverage the full front-to-back services, giving the new bank total control to create banking products that are easy to consume, configure and integrate with external applications. With Temenos, Barko aims to disrupt the banking status quo with more accessible and affordable banking to advance the financial wellbeing of millions of South Africans underserved by traditional banks. Critically, the investment in Temenos’ open banking platform will enable Barko to launch new banking products, from deposit and savings accounts to credit and loans, at speed and at a low cost.
Barko has applied for a Mutual Banking License to operate as a full-service digital bank. In line with its social mission, the new banking capabilities powered by Temenos will enable Barko to further assist underserved and unbanked South Africans with longer-term and lower-cost loans, competitive affordable banking products and easy to use services with a seamless experience across its digital and branch channels. Barko already uses Temenos Infinity to deliver a seamless omnichannel lending experience with fast access to microfinance via a digital lending app and a network of more than 200 branches. More than 3,000 financial services institutions around the world rely on Temenos’ modern, open, cloud technology. The Temenos Banking Cloud enables banks and businesses to consume, manage and maintain banking services in a secure, continually evolving, self-service platform. Using open APIs, banks can also collaborate and extend banking services with other fintechs and developers.