Star 2021-10-21

APP-BASED bank Bank Zero, one of the new, smaller bank start-ups in South Africa, has released its new pricing for 2022, with all fees remaining exactly as they were in 2021 and 2020, in line with the bank’s stated aim to bring much-needed relief to both consumers and businesses. Chairperson of the bank Michael Jordaan also said this week that after a constrained opening, Bank Zero was now fully open for business to all customers, and the Bank Zero App was also freely available from yesterday in the App Store and in the Google Play Store. Public access to the bank was initially limited to waitlisted individuals while the effectiveness of the digital customer support processes created during the pandemic to match a new WFH (working from home) world was…

Given Majola given.majola@inl.co.za THE COVID-19 pandemic had proved that low-skilled employees who worked in a vulnerable service industry such as the tourism and hospitality industry, were largely unable to self-sustain their employment as they lacked general business knowledge that would accompany a higher education qualification, said private higher education institution Mancosa academic Lucinda Arulappan. According to Arulappan, the sector – formerly viewed as one of the most exciting and lucrative industries to be employed or establish a business in – had now plunged into a realm of contingency plans and recovery strategies. “For most South Africans involved in these businesses, the Covid-19 pandemic has brought about sheer distress and disruption as businesses continue to close their doors to the public at a precipitous rate,” said Arulappan. She said a…

Given Majola given.majola@inl.co.za THE INSURANCE industry could see a larger number of cancer claims over the next year as people become more comfortable visiting medical facilities again for these delayed checks and receive their diagnosis, according to the Liberty Group’s chief medical officer, Dr Dominique Stott. She said that owing to the delays, for some the diagnosis of a more severe stage of cancer was inevitable which would exponentially impact the survival rate and the cost of treatment. “Even with a medical aid, there are so many other costs associated with cancer treatment, both medical and lifestyle related, especially if the disease isn’t caught early enough,” said Stott. Earlier this year, Liberty's 2020 Claim Statistics revealed that cancer and leukaemia made up 27 percent of all claims that year.…

A CONFESSION BRITBOX The true story of DS Stephen Fulcher, who risked his career to catch the culprit responsible for a woman’s disappearance. Starring Martin Freeman. MARTELIZE SE STAMTAFEL VIA, DSTV CHANNEL 147, 5PM Radio presenter Martelize Brink combines two of her great loves – food and digging into family history – in this talk show. In each episode, she brings a popular local soap star into her kitchen, where they’ll explore the star’s surname while cooking dishes to suit the roots of that name. RAM VIR 'N RUS VIA, DSTV CHANNEL 147, 8PM An exclusive agency plays matchmaker for four South African men who’ve struck out on the dating scene and Russian women who are looking to get married. The would-be couples will meet up for the…

Liam Karabo Joyce Given the number of Twitter wars he has got into recently, we would not blame you if you had forgotten that Shimza (real name Ashley Raphala) is an award-winning music producer and DJ. However, the star, who got into a heated exchange with former DA leader Mmusi Maimane, has just released his Fight To Love EP, which includes remixes by Louie Vega and Floyd Lavine. With people around the world still coming to grips with the ongoing effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, Shimza teamed up with singer Maleh, who was inspired to write Fight To Love following strict lockdowns. “I started working on it quite a while back, around May. Then we sent the track to Maleh, who wrote beautiful lyrics and she vibed with the track…

Shingai Darangwa shingai.darangwa@inl.co.za AFROBEATS star Wizkid has been on a roller-coaster journey across the globe over the past few months. It all started when his single, Essence, featuring Tems, caught fire on US radio around May, just after the music video came out. Soon afterward, several celebrities, among them the likes of Alicia Keys, Ciara, Megan Good, Lori Harvey and Toni Braxton, posted videos of themselves vibing to the song on Instagram stories. The single has since gone viral, sparking dance challenges and broadening Wizkid’s international presence. Dubbed the “song of the summer”, Essence has exploded onto the scene for its infectious and vibrant vibe that meshes the sounds of Afrobeats with R&B and a hint of hip hop. Originally released in October last year, as a part of Wizkid’s…