Financial Administrator jobs Sandton Gauteng 2026 | Pepkor Lifestyle Corporate Finance vacancy | SAP accounts payable finance administrator jobs Johannesburg | retail group finance administrator jobs Sandton 2026
Pepkor Lifestyle is recruiting a Financial Administrator within its Corporate Group Finance – Operations department based in Sandton, Gauteng — a permanent, associate-level finance role at the head office level of one of South Africa’s largest listed retail groups. This is not a store-level finance position — it is a Group Finance function role supporting Pepkor Lifestyle’s multi-entity, multi-brand finance operations. The Financial Administrator manages the full direct deposit bank confirmation process across all entities, executes month-end journal entries and balance sheet reconciliations in SAP, resolves over/under-sale processing queries, handles forex release requests, and manages the accounts@incredible.co.za shared mailbox. Advanced Excel, SAP experience, and 1 year of banking experience are required. This role closes 8 May 2026. Apply now.
💼 Permanent | Pepkor Lifestyle Corporate, Sandton | Financial Administrator | SAP | Direct Deposit | Balance Sheet Recons | Closing 8 May 2026 — Apply Now.
Pepkor Lifestyle Financial Administrator – Job Overview
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Job Title | Financial Administrator |
| Company | Pepkor Lifestyle |
| Division | Pepkor Lifestyle Corporate – Group Finance |
| Business Unit | Operations |
| Industry | Retail / Corporate Finance |
| Job Functional Area | Finance |
| Job Type | Permanent |
| Experience Level | Associate |
| Location | Sandton, Gauteng |
| Minimum Qualification | Grade 12 + Diploma in Finance, Communications, or related field |
| Minimum Experience | 1 year banking experience + proven finance administration experience |
| Key Systems | SAP, Advanced Excel |
| Salary | Not disclosed |
| Posted Date | 10 April 2026 |
| Closing Date | ⚠️ 08 May 2026 |
| Application Status | ✅ Open — Apply Now |
About Pepkor Lifestyle Corporate Finance
Pepkor Lifestyle is the retail brand cluster within JSE-listed Pepkor Holdings — one of South Africa’s largest retail conglomerates — operating brands including HiFi Corp, Incredible Connection, Bradlows, Rochester, and Russells across hundreds of store locations nationwide. The Corporate Group Finance – Operations department in Sandton serves as the financial nerve centre for this multi-entity, multi-brand retail network — managing head office banking, inter-entity payments, direct deposit processing, balance sheet reconciliations, and the financial controls that keep the group’s store network operating with accuracy and compliance. The Financial Administrator role sits within this function, providing critical operational support that directly impacts the integrity of Pepkor Lifestyle’s group financial reporting.
Purpose of the Role
The Financial Administrator enables service delivery to Group Finance employees and the broader Pepkor Lifestyle store network — administering the direct deposit bank confirmation process across all entities, executing SAP journal entries for month-end clearing, completing balance sheet reconciliations by the 13th working day, and responding to store and external finance queries with accuracy and urgency. The role bridges the gap between the store network (which generates direct deposit transactions) and the head office finance function (which must verify, process, and report those transactions correctly) — requiring both technical SAP and Excel competency and the customer-service mindset to respond to stores as internal clients.
Key Responsibilities – Pepkor Lifestyle Financial Administrator
Direct Deposit Bank Confirmation
- Confirm all customer direct deposit payments made into Head Office bank accounts across all Pepkor Lifestyle entities (Account 24100509) — verifying payment receipt against expected amounts and references
- Record confirmed payments on the Direct Deposit Verification Sheet — maintaining a complete, audit-ready log of all confirmed transactions
- Respond to stores with a bank screenshot and a reference number to use when processing the sale — ensuring the store can complete the transaction accurately and without delay
- Request the original direct deposit receipt from stores and file it in accordance with the document retention policy
- Update the reference field in SAP to match the reference provided to the store — maintaining system data integrity across all entities
- Request forex release (USD, GBP) from the USD account when required — managing the administrative process for foreign currency release in line with authorisation requirements
- Submit store quotations for direct deposit payments above R100,000 to the B2B Team for processing
- For payments exceeding R500,000 — send proof of payment, bank screenshot, and quotation to the Finance Executive for approval before processing, ensuring the escalation threshold is never bypassed
- Respond to general email queries sent to
accounts@incredible.co.za— including requests for bank confirmation letters, company documents, and general payment queries from internal and external stakeholders
Month-End Workflow & Deadlines
- Clear SK and ZE direct deposit transactions that have not cleared in the correct period, on a daily basis — preventing aged uncleared items from distorting period-end balances
- Resolve direct deposit queries including over/under-sale processing issues — investigating discrepancies between payment amounts received and sales amounts processed by stores
- Journal available direct deposit funds to store manual account 21100002 — ensuring funds are correctly allocated to the relevant store’s account in SAP
- Investigate and process sales that need to be cleared using direct deposit funds — matching unallocated receipts to outstanding sales transactions
- Journal all direct deposits older than 3 months to Head Office or NDP accounts as unknown deposits (21090001) across all entities — maintaining a clean aged debtors and receipts position
- Post journal entries for payments made to Head Office into the correct general ledger accounts — including Africlearing, Netcash, forex bank charges, and incorrectly mapped store payments from Wi-Group, RCS, ABSA, FNB, and Fidelity
- Investigate and clear store refunds processed under Head Office by Accounts Payable — ensuring refund transactions are correctly reversed or reallocated
- Process SNAM & COIN NDP FNB Namibia card clearing journals (Account 24104002) to appropriate ledgers including fuel and refreshments allocations
Balance Sheet Reconciliations
- Ensure no reconciling items are older than 3 months — maintaining a clean, current balance sheet position with all differences resolved within the required ageing threshold
- Complete all reconciliations by the 13th working day of each month — meeting the group’s month-end close deadline without exception
Self-Management & Teamwork
- Maintain a professional image in both personal conduct and work output — representing the Group Finance function to stores and external parties at all times
- Meet all deadlines and communicate proactively if any deadline is at risk — proposing suitable resolutions before a deadline is missed rather than after
- Proactively develop own skills and financial knowledge — taking ownership of personal development within the finance function
- Provide support across the wider Finance Department as required — contributing to a collaborative, high-performance finance team environment
Minimum Requirements – Pepkor Lifestyle Financial Administrator Sandton
Education: Grade 12 (Matric) is essential. A Diploma in Finance, Communications, or a related field is required alongside the Matric — candidates without a post-Matric qualification in a relevant field will not meet the minimum requirements for this role.
Experience: A minimum of 1 year of banking experience is required — specifically, experience working within a banking operations, payment processing, or bank reconciliation environment. Proven experience in a finance administration role is required in addition to the banking background. The combination of banking and finance administration experience is what equips the candidate to manage the direct deposit confirmation, SAP journal, and balance sheet reconciliation functions simultaneously.
Systems: Advanced Excel proficiency is required — not intermediate. The role involves building and maintaining the Direct Deposit Verification Sheet, reconciliation schedules, and period-end reporting that require VLOOKUP, SUMIF, pivot tables, and formula-based data management at a minimum. SAP experience — specifically in the purchase ledger, general ledger, and journal entry modules — is required or strongly expected given the depth of SAP-based responsibilities described.
Technical Skills: Strong mathematical ability for payment verification and reconciliation; query handling and problem-solving skills for resolving over/under-sale discrepancies and unallocated receipts; multi-tasking ability to manage simultaneous direct deposit confirmations, store queries, and month-end deadlines; assertiveness to escalate payments above R500,000 to the Finance Executive without hesitation.
Attributes: Attention to detail — a single incorrect SAP reference or missed journal entry has downstream consequences for store trading and group reporting; stress resilience — the month-end window is compressed and high-pressure; initiative — the role requires proactive identification and resolution of aged items without waiting to be directed; business acumen — the ability to understand the commercial consequence of a delayed bank confirmation or an uncleared direct deposit for the store’s ability to trade.
Why Join Pepkor Lifestyle Corporate Finance – Sandton
- Group Finance exposure at head office level — working in Pepkor Lifestyle’s Corporate Group Finance function provides visibility of multi-entity retail finance operations, inter-company transactions, forex management, and group financial controls that store-level or single-entity finance roles cannot offer — a career-defining exposure at an early stage
- SAP multi-entity environment — operating SAP across multiple Pepkor Lifestyle legal entities and brands simultaneously builds a depth of SAP General Ledger and Journal Entry experience that is highly sought-after and well-remunerated across South African corporate finance
- JSE-listed group career platform — Pepkor Holdings’ scale, governance standards, and internal mobility create genuine pathways from Financial Administrator into senior finance, management accounting, and financial control roles within the group
- Sandton head office location — working at Pepkor Lifestyle’s Sandton corporate offices places the Financial Administrator within Johannesburg’s premier business district, with access to professional networks, training resources, and career opportunities concentrated in South Africa’s financial capital
- Permanent employment with group benefits — this is a permanent position within a JSE-listed group offering structured HR, performance management, and benefits frameworks
- Process improvement mandate — the role description explicitly asks for a candidate who can “introduce and implement improved processes” — giving an innovative, analytically minded Financial Administrator genuine scope to redesign workflows and build credibility beyond their job grade
Career Growth Path – Pepkor Lifestyle Corporate Finance
- Financial Administrator → Senior Financial Administrator / Finance Operations Specialist
- Finance Operations Specialist → Finance Officer / Junior Accountant
- Junior Accountant → Management Accountant / Financial Analyst
- Management Accountant → Finance Manager / Financial Controller (Pepkor Lifestyle Group)
Frequently Asked Questions – Financial Administrator Jobs Sandton 2026
What does the direct deposit bank confirmation process actually involve — and why does it require a dedicated administrator at group level? In a multi-brand retail group like Pepkor Lifestyle, customers of stores like Incredible Connection and HiFi Corp sometimes pay for high-value purchases by making a direct bank deposit into the Pepkor head office bank account rather than paying in-store by card or cash. This happens most commonly for large orders, B2B purchases, and online or telephonic sales. When the deposit arrives at the head office bank account, it must be verified — confirmed as received in the correct amount, matched to the correct store and transaction, and communicated back to the store with a reference number so the store can process the sale in their point-of-sale system. Without this confirmation, the store cannot release the product to the customer. The Financial Administrator is the single point of accountability for this verification and communication process across all Pepkor Lifestyle entities — meaning delays or errors directly impact store trading, customer experience, and cash flow. The volume of daily direct deposits across a multi-brand, multi-store network makes this a dedicated full-time function rather than a part-time task.
What SAP modules and transaction types are used in this role — and what level of SAP proficiency is expected? This role operates primarily within SAP’s Financial Accounting (FI) module — specifically the General Ledger (GL) and Accounts Receivable (AR) sub-modules. The key SAP transactions the Financial Administrator executes include: updating reference fields on incoming bank receipts; posting manual journal entries to clear unallocated direct deposits to the correct GL accounts; processing inter-entity journals for unknown deposits and aged uncleared items; and running GL account balance reports for reconciliation purposes. The SAP account numbers referenced in the job description — 24100509 (head office bank), 21100002 (store manual account), 21090001 (unknown deposits), 24104002 (Namibia card clearing) — are all GL account codes within SAP’s chart of accounts. The expected SAP proficiency level is a user who can execute journal entries, run GL line item reports, and update document reference fields independently without requiring a functional consultant to guide each transaction. Candidates with SAP FI experience at this transactional level — even from a different industry — will adapt quickly to Pepkor’s specific chart of accounts.
What is a balance sheet reconciliation — and what does “no reconciling items older than 3 months” mean in practice? A balance sheet reconciliation is the process of confirming that every balance on the company’s balance sheet GL accounts is supported by underlying documentation — meaning every rand sitting in an account can be traced to a specific transaction or obligation. For this role, the primary reconciliation accounts are the direct deposit clearing accounts — where incoming bank receipts sit until they are matched to a store sale and cleared. A reconciling item is any amount in the account that cannot yet be matched and cleared — it is “reconciling” because it represents a difference between what the system shows and what has been confirmed as correctly allocated. “No reconciling items older than 3 months” means that any unmatched deposit that has been sitting in the clearing account for more than 90 days must be resolved — either by matching it to an outstanding sale, returning it to the payer, or journaling it to the unknown deposits account (21090001) for further investigation. This ageing threshold prevents the clearing accounts from accumulating large, unresolved balances that distort the group’s balance sheet and create audit findings.
What does “over/under-sale processing” mean — and how does the Financial Administrator resolve it? An over-sale occurs when a store processes a sale for a higher amount than the direct deposit received — for example, a customer pays R9,800 by direct deposit but the store processes a sale of R10,000. The R200 difference sits as an unmatched debit in the clearing account. An under-sale occurs when the store processes a sale for less than the amount received — for example, the customer deposits R10,000 but the store processes R9,800, leaving R200 unallocated in the receipts account. The Financial Administrator resolves these discrepancies by: contacting the store to confirm the actual sale amount; requesting a corrected transaction where the store has processed incorrectly; or, where the discrepancy is due to a genuine customer overpayment, initiating a refund process. Unresolved over/under-sale discrepancies accumulate in the clearing accounts and age into reconciling items — which is why daily monitoring and prompt resolution is a core requirement of the role.
The role mentions handling forex (USD, GBP) — what does this involve for a Financial Administrator? The forex release function in this role is an administrative process rather than a treasury or trading function. When a customer or store requires payment in foreign currency — for example, purchasing imported goods invoiced in USD or GBP — the Financial Administrator submits a request to the treasury or banking team to release the required foreign currency amount from Pepkor Lifestyle’s USD account to settle the obligation. The Financial Administrator’s responsibility is to ensure the release request is correctly documented, submitted to the appropriate approver, and tracked through to confirmation. This is not currency trading or forex risk management — it is the operational administration of pre-approved forex transactions within the group’s treasury framework. The exposure to forex administration is nonetheless a valuable credential for a Financial Administrator seeking to develop broader treasury and multi-currency accounting skills within the corporate finance pathway.
⚠️ How to Apply – Pepkor Lifestyle Financial Administrator Sandton
Documents Required:
- Updated CV clearly detailing banking experience, SAP modules used, and Excel proficiency level
- Certified copy of Matric certificate
- Certified copy of Diploma in Finance, Communications, or related field
- Copy of South African ID
- Reference letters from previous banking or finance administration employers (strongly recommended)
⚠️ Closing Date: 08 May 2026 — Posted 10 April. Apply before the deadline.
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