BSB steps up digital shift with new platforms
Lewanika Timothy | Wednesday November 19, 2025 06:29
A suite of digital services, grounded in the bank’s Lesedi 2025 strategy, come as financial institutions across the region race to expand digital rails, reduce branch dependency, and deepen financial inclusion through technology. The bank last week unveiled a refreshed mobile banking app, internet banking platform and an cellphone banking service that now includes bill-payment capabilities. The additions place BSB more squarely in line with broader trends in the local market, where banks have been accelerating digital adoption as customers demand round-the-clock access and real-time transactions. BSB CEO, Nixon Marumala, said the launch represents a notable step in the bank’s operational shift. “This development marks a significant step in modernising service delivery and improving customer experience.
“The digital upgrade strengthens the Bank’s role in driving financial inclusion while supporting the growth of Botswana’s digital economy,” he added. For BSB, which serves a broad customer base that includes rural and semi-urban communities, the strategy is also about bridging access gaps. The bank says the new tools are designed to offer faster, more secure and more flexible banking without requiring customers to travel to physical branches—an efficiency focus that mirrors the rest of the industry as banks tighten cost structures and automate low-value services. Through the upgraded systems, customers can now buy airtime across all local networks, purchase Botswana Power Corporation electricity units, and pay for services such as DStv subscriptions directly from the mobile app, internet banking or USSD. The bill-payment functionality is expected to drive “habitual digital use”, reducing queues in branches and encouraging customers to manage their finances independently. Beyond payments, users can check balances, view mini-statements and transfer funds within BSB accounts or to other banks features that have become baseline expectations in a market where digital convenience increasingly dictates customer loyalty.
While BSB’s digital overhaul aligns with the wider industry’s push towards automated, self-service banking, it also underscores a competitive reality: as digital ecosystems mature, banks unable to keep pace risk losing relevance among younger, mobile-native customers.