Standard Bank Instant Money Voucher

I created an Instant Money voucher using my wife’s cellphone number via the Standard Bank app. Approximately two weeks later, when we attempted to redeem the voucher at a Standard Bank ATM, we received a message stating that the voucher had already been redeemed. We tried again with the same result.

We immediately contacted the Standard Bank Instant Money department and were informed that the funds had been withdrawn the previous day at an ATM in Johannesburg.

According to the bank, the *****ster initially failed to withdraw the funds due to an incorrect PIN. The *****ster then managed to reset the PIN and successfully withdrew the money. Standard Bank claims that the SMS containing the new PIN was sent to my wife’s cellphone number — the same number linked to the Instant Money voucher.

However, my wife never received any SMS notification or PIN reset message. Her number was correct, active, and in use, and no SIM swap was requested or performed by us.

What is deeply concerning is that a PIN reset and withdrawal were possible without the intended recipient ever receiving the PIN. Despite this, Standard Bank has declined to reimburse the funds and has attributed the loss to alleged credential compromise.

I work in IT and am fully aware of common ***** methods. Based on the facts, this appears to be a failure in the Instant Money security process rather than customer negligence. I am extremely disappointed with how this matter has been handled and the lack of accountability shown by Standard Bank.