TymeBank, as most South Africans know it, officially launched in 2019 under founders Coenraad Jonker and Tjaart van der Walt. Its roots, however, stretch back to 2012, when it began as a Deloitte project named “Take Your Money Everywhere” (TYME), a mobile money and remittance operator initially funded by MTN.
A third founder, Rolf Eichweber, contributed to early development but was not part of the commercial launch.
Tyme’s journey included a period of ownership by the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, which acquired the project in 2014.
By the end of 2018, Tyme Digital partnered with Motsepe’s African Rainbow Capital (ARC) to purchase the business from CBA. ARC now serves as the bank’s anchor shareholder, holding an effective majority stake, alongside a diverse group of international investors.
Global expansion and impact
The Tyme Group has expanded into Asia under the brand GoTyme, operating in Singapore, the Philippines, Indonesia, and Vietnam. The bank confirmed that the GoTyme branding will be rolled out across all operations in the first half of 2026.
These international ventures are managed under TymeGlobal, which was established in 2017 as the group’s international arm, with Jonker serving as executive chairman and CEO, and van der Walt as director.
TymeBank’s leadership has seen multiple transitions over the years. Sandile Shabalala, a member of the founding team, served as CEO from 2016 until the bank’s commercial launch in 2019, when Tauriq Keraan took over. Keraan led the bank until 2022, moving into the international division to spearhead Tyme’s expansion.
Jonker then assumed the dual role of TymeBank CEO and Tyme Group executive chairman before stepping aside in 2024 to concentrate on global operations, appointing Karl Westvig as CEO for retail banking.
He holds a BCom in Industrial Psychology from the University of the Western Cape and a Postgraduate Diploma in Business Management from the Gordon Institute of Business Science, with prior experience at Standard Bank and Deloitte.
With its expansion into Asia and ongoing leadership reshuffles, TymeBank is redefining its identity from a local digital bank into a global financial player, maintaining its roots in innovation while reaching for international markets.
