Atlas Finance – Trusted financial service provider of personal loan.
Atlas Finance – Trusted financial service provider of personal loans. Mobile image.

30 Years of Changing Lives

We’ve all been in a tight spot when there was just too much month left at the end of our money, and we needed to borrow cash quickly. Atlas Finance, a leading financial service provider of personal loans, has helped over 2 million South Africans with cash loans in the past 30 years to help them cover every day needs like school fees, groceries, business loans and even home alterations. 

Building trust has been key to the company’s growth since Jack Halfon, Founder and CEO of Atlas Finance started the business 30 years ago. 

Immigrating from Zimbabwe to South Africa with only R300 to his name in 1978, Jack first opened a clothing operation, manufacturing ladies’ corporate uniforms for banks, business societies, hospitals and institutions. He sold the business 8 years later in 1986 to venture into the financial sector. 

In 1994, after the first democratic elections, Jack saw a gap in the market for unsecured loans as black South Africans had largely been excluded from the formal credit market, and so Atlas Finance was born. 

Atlas Finance first opened its first two branches in Johannesburg in 1994, the first one in Eloff Street, Johannesburg with a second one following soon after in Jorrissen Street, Braamfontein.

Jack’s vision for Atlas Finance was to prevent consumers from falling into the claws of backstreet lenders who offered quick loans at extremely high rates that would be impossible for borrowers to pay back. His business ethos was, and still is, to treat Atlas Finance’s clients professionally and courteously, and to ensure they are able to afford the debt. He also insisted that all clients were treated professionally and that the transaction took place in a dignified, unintimidating and confidential environment. This ethos remains at the heart of Atlas Finance today, cementing its reputation as a trusted financial service provider

Atlas Finance Branches

Jack’s business model proved to be hugely successful as the first Atlas Finance branch outside of Gauteng was opened in Middelburg, Mpumalanga in 1998. By 2001, Atlas Finance had 30 branchessolidifying its position as a trusted financial service provider of personal loans. Despite facing challenges with The new National Credit Act being implemented in 2007, the company grew from strength to strength, acquiring 40 Power Finance branches in 2013.

In 2020, the Covid-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdowns meant the company was unable to trade for two months, but this didn’t stop the success train from steamrolling to 269 branches as of October 2024. Atlas Finance’s resilience during this period solidified its position as a trusted financial service provider of personal loans.

With new branches being opened every month, Jack hopes to grow Atlas Finance’s national footprint to 300 branches in the next financial year, providing their clientele with short-term loans, cross border money transfers, and debt review clearance in a trustful and respectful manner, further enhancing its reputation as a leading financial service provider of personal loans.

Click here for a full list of our branches

Atlas Finance desktop banner with a map of South Africa showing the Atlas Finance branches. This shows that Atlas Finance is a leading financial service provider of personal loans.
Atlas Finance mobile map showing branch locations across South Africa. Atlas Finance is a leading financial service provider of personal loans.

How Can We Help You?

Atlas Finance offers a diverse selection of financial solutions to meet your changing priorities. As a trusted financial service provider of personal loans, we offer as much flexibility as we can so that you are able to make informed choices as to the kind of loan that would suit you.

Atlas Finance Services

  • Short term loans and cash loans. Loans of R500 up to R8000 with a 1-to-6-month payment period.

  • Domestic worker loans. Loans of up to R4000 are available for housekeepers and gardeners with up to 4 months to pay.

  • Cross border payments and money transfers. Send money across the border to your family for as little as R25.

  • Debt review clearance. Under debt review? We can help unflag your credit status so that you can get credit for the things you really need.

Click here for more information about our services.

High quality customer service from Atlas Finance - a trusted financial service of personal loans.
High-quality customer service from Atlas Finance, a trusted financial service provider of personal loans tailored to your needs.

Why Clients Choose Atlas Finance

While we do love to shout our achievements from the roof, our clients love us too. 

Josephine Mulaudzi visited the Atlas Finance branch in Jeppestown to apply for a personal loan as she needed to send money for school fees to her daughter in Mozambique. Josephine says she refers all her friends who need to take out a loan to the Jeppestown Atlas Finance branch because the staff are very friendly and helpful.

Kenneth Migama needed money to start his own side hustle and went to an Atlas Finance branch to get a cash loan to help him get his business off the ground. He loved the quick and efficient service from the staff.

Montoa Morake has been a client of Atlas Finance for more than 4 years. The first time she took out a personal loan with Atlas Finance was to cover her brother’s funeral. Montoa says she didn’t have a penny to spare and went to the Jeppestown branch in tears. Monoa says the staff not only helped her get the money to go to Lesotho to bury her brother, they also helped her emotionally.

Mauleen Madlala from Pongola, KwaZulu-Natal says she heard about Atlas Finance via her late friend who was helped by the company. Mauleen says her mother had a stroke in 2020 and the cash loan she took out from Atlas Finance helped her to take her mother to the hospital and church. She is still a client today and is proud that she can pay her loan instalments back in time.

Our Leaders

Founded in 1994, Atlas Finance is a family-owned business, driven by core family values of warmth and belonging where everybody is treated fairly and with respect. The company’s board of Directors not only guides the company strategy and fosters innovation, they also prioritise both customer and staff needs, treating not only their customers with care and respect, but also their staff. 

 

Jack Halfon
Jack Halfon
CEO

After immigrating to South Africa from Zimbabwe in 1978, Jack opened a clothing operation, manufacturing ladies’ corporate uniforms supplying the likes of banks, business societies, hospitals, and institutions. He sold the business in 1986 and ventured into the financial sector, running financial investments and trading in hard assets.
In 1994, Jack opened the first Atlas Finance branch on Eloff Street, Johannesburg.
Keeping a culture of entrepreneurship and agility, he expanded the business aggressively over the next 29 years, taking it to more than 250 branches and becoming the biggest independently-owned micro-finance provider in South Africa.
Jack remains the CEO today and is the visionary and driver of the brand and the business.
He has further aspirations of growth for the business and looks forward to growing its national footprint to 300 in the next financial year.

Danny (Halfon) Mofsowitz
Danny (Halfon) Mofsowitz
Director

Danny completed her studies at Rand Afrikaans University obtaining a BA in Marketing Communications in 2004.
She then attended the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute in New York, studying Method Acting.
On her return to Johannesburg in 2006, she joined the family business setting up a mortgage origination division. In 2009, she took over the marketing department at Atlas Finance which she headed up until 2022 instituting formalised marketing structures, plans, and campaigns.
She now fulfils a strategic executive role on the Atlas Finance board.

Niresh Gopichand
Niresh Gopichand
Risk Director

Niresh Gopichand has held various roles within Atlas Finance since 1997 and currently serves as the Risk Director. With over two decades of experience at Atlas Finance, Niresh has played a pivotal role in the company’s growth and risk management strategies. His extensive expertise and commitment to the financial sector have made him a valuable asset to the organization.
In addition to his responsibilities at Atlas Finance, Niresh has been a board member of Micro Finance South Africa (MFSA) since 2017. His contributions to the MFSA have been instrumental in ensuring stability of the Micro Financial Services Industry of South Africa.
Niresh’s dedication to continuous professional development is evident from his academic achievements. He completed the Management Advancement Program (MAP) at Wits Business School in 2012, which equipped him with advanced management skills and strategic thinking capabilities. Furthermore, he enhanced his knowledge in the field of microfinance by completing the International Executive Development Program in Micro Finance (IEDP) at Wits Business School in 2018.
Niresh’s extensive experience, combined with his academic background and leadership roles, underscores his commitment to excellence and innovation in the financial sector.

Brett Caminsky
Brett Caminsky
Director

Brett grew up in Kwazulu-Natal and completed his Bachelor of Optometry degree at Rand Afrikaans University / University of Johannesburg in 2001.
After the completion of his studies, he was self-employed in business committed to youth-development and community upliftment. Here he filled an operational and project management role, enjoying fantastic success in the nationwide implementation of large-scale, broad-based initiatives developing learners from the public school system.