Problem resolution clients' biggest beef with SA banks - Index reveals customer experience ratings

New benchmark data shows that while the quality of banking service in South Africa is solid by international standards, overall customer satisfaction is declining.

The gap between the two tells an important story about where the industry finds itself right now, say the researchers behind the 2025 Consumer Banking Customer Experience (CE) Index compiled by the University of Pretoria (UP).

Discovery Bank has emerged as the leader in the latest rankings, followed by Absa in second place, and Standard Bank and Nedbank in a combined third position.

Comparing this year's results with the 2024 release shows that poll positions in banking can easily change given the competitive nature of customer experience changes that banks implement, UP says.

This is the first year that Discovery Bank has been included, broadening the comparison of customer experience across South Africa’s major consumer banking brands.

Stephen Grootes talks to Professor Adré Schreuder, Chair in Customer Experience Management at UP.

Prof. Schreuder refers to banking as one of those very intimate things, best described as a love/hate relationship.

And while the local industry performs well, there are evidently shortcomings when it comes to how banks handle things going wrong.

"When things go well and everything is working with transactions going through, you don't have any complaints. But, as soon as you hit a problem area - something like a debit order issue or an ATM that's out of order, that's where the real challenges start."

"I think we've come to a very interesting stage in our history with everything AI and everybody jumping on the bandwagon. I still see a failure to do the basics right - with a debit order issue for example, you have to get onto either a chat or the contact centre... and you go through those and then it ends with the dreaded 'you'll have to go to the branch'.

"You can almost feel the emotion when that happens", he exclaims, noting that these basics CAN be done better as is proven by the international benchmark.

Referring to Discovery Bank and its number one spot, Schreuder points out that their service is tied to a lifestyle approach, as with Discovery's other products.

This is a benefit currently differentiating Discovery from our other big banks, but the Prof says these are watching closely.

"The other banks are seeing that and they're going to catch up, so the difference in the top positions on the Index can change very quickly. I'm predicting that we might not see Discovery's standard necessarily staying the best - the other banks are going to follow and see what they can do to knock them off that first position."

At the same time, the Index finds, while innovation is important, customers are ultimately judging and rewarding banks that deliver reliability and value

"Those institutions that get the basics right are the ones that will lead the customer experience race in South Africa."

Scroll up to the audio player to listen to the full conversation with UP's Prof. Adré Schreuder