JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - A severe shortage of computer skills in South Africa has left its major banks fighting over a limited pool of people with the skills they need to upgrade technology platforms and keep pace with changing customer demands and competition from new rivals.
The country's four biggest lenders - Absa, Standard Bank, Nedbank and FirstRand - told Reuters it was hard to access the skills they need to rapidly digitise - a response to growing demand for online and mobile banking and the arrival of a host of digital-only banks trying to steal their customers with slick apps and cut-price fees.