Postbank Troubles Push 2 Million SASSA Beneficiaries to New Banks

Persistent technical issues with Postbank’s Black Card system have compelled more than 2 million South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) beneficiaries to transition their grant payments to other banks. This shift underscores growing dissatisfaction with Postbank’s service reliability and the broader challenges faced during the card migration process.​

Postbank Troubles Push 2 Million SASSA Beneficiaries to New Banks

The transition from SASSA Gold Cards to Postbank Black Cards, aimed to enhance security and streamline grant disbursements. However, the process has been marred by system glitches, particularly affecting ATM transactions. Beneficiaries have reported long queues, system outages, and inadequate communication at gold card replacement sites, leading to significant delays in accessing their funds.​

Minister of Social Development, Sisisi Tolashe, has raised concern over the situation, describing it as a crisis for SASSA beneficiaries especially at times when 62% of SRD grant applicants are currently unemployed. She emphasized the need for Postbank to provide clear explanations to the Social Development Committee regarding the ongoing system issues and the measures being taken to resolve them.​

The ongoing Postbank black card glitches at ATMs delay SASSA payments, impacting substantial number of SASSA beneficiaries who have now decided to receive their grants through other banks. This migration reflects a growing awareness among recipients of their right to choose more reliable banking services and certainly increasing the demand for dependable financial institutions.​

Postbank Faces Pressure as Millions of SASSA Beneficiaries Move to Other Banks

Currently, Postbank has rolled out several steps to ease the ongoing crisis, including extending the Gold Card migration deadline to 31 May 2025, expanding card replacement points through a partnership with Spar, and improving communication to guide beneficiaries. However, many users still face long queues, system glitches, and uncertainty.

These unresolved issues have led over 2 million SASSA beneficiaries to switch to commercial banks, highlighting growing frustration and a lack of confidence in Postbank’s reliability. The situation underscores the urgent need for stable, transparent service delivery in South Africa’s social grant and Social Relief SRD grant system.

“We want Postbank and SASSA to fix the grant payment system and restore trust in the process,” say frustrated beneficiaries facing continued disruptions.

Support Contacts

• Postbank: postbank.enquiries@postbank.co.za | 0800 53 54 55
• SASSA: sassa.gov.za | 0800 60 10 11