GIWUSA Denounces SASSA’s Move Away from Postbank, Labeling It a ‘Betrayal’

Johannesburg – The General Industries Workers Union of South Africa (GIWUSA) has expressed its “outrage, but not surprise” at the concerning decision to end the service agreement between the South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) and Postbank.

“This choice constitutes a coordinated act of economic sabotage against a state-owned entity,” GIWUSA stated on Friday, 29 August 2025.

The move to cut ties with Postbank is part of SASSA’s effort to introduce biometric systems for beneficiaries, aimed at effectively combating fraud.

“This is clearly a stealthy attempt at privatization, designed to shift millions of vulnerable South Africans into the hands of the very banking cartel that has manipulated the financial system, imposed excessive service fees and interest rates, and distorted the Rand for their own benefit,” GIWUSA commented.

“While much of the discourse has focused on administrative, logistical, and other secondary matters, the workers’ movement must make it clear:

“This is not just an administrative shift; it is a deliberate act of capitalist class warfare, aimed at dismantling public assets and further subordinating the working class and the impoverished to the exploitative practices of financial capital.”

SASSA is set to launch a new mandatory biometric enrolment system for all social grant beneficiaries, starting on 1 September 2025, ensuring that services will remain uninterrupted.

SASSA reports that most grant beneficiaries currently receive their monthly payments through commercial banks rather than Postbank.

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