Our purpose is to drive Africa’s growth. We are committed to being more than a provider of financial products and services – we are a catalyst for economic change in our countries of operation and we make life better for our fellow Africans by doing the right business the right way.
On this page you will find an overview of Standard Bank and why we believe in ‘reporting to society’.
SEE moreAn account of our social, economic and environmental impacts and how these contribute to our sustainability and ability to achieve our purpose. It includes our environmental, social and governance report, and Standard Bank South Africa’s transformation report.
We are a financial services organisation in, for and across Africa.
We operate in 20 African countries and are headquartered in Johannesburg. Our primary listing is on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) in South Africa, with a secondary listing in Namibia. Subsidiary banks are listed on exchanges in Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria and Uganda.
On this page:An account of our social, economic and environmental impacts and how these contribute to our sustainability and ability to achieve our purpose. It includes our environmental, social and governance report, and Standard Bank South Africa’s transformation report.
We publish several reports to provide our stakeholders with the information they need to assess our performance.
Our annual integrated report, our primary report, provides a holistic and material assessment of our ability to create value over time. It considers the issues material to maintaining the commercial viability and social relevance required to achieve our strategy in the medium to long term, and covers both our financial performance and material non-financial information.
Our reporting to society platform aims to communicate with a broad group of stakeholders about how we impact on the societies, economies and environments in which we operate.
SEE moreAn account of our social, economic and environmental impacts and how these contribute to our sustainability and ability to achieve our purpose. It includes our environmental, social and governance report, and Standard Bank South Africa’s transformation report.
Standard Bank is driven by our purpose: ‘Africa is our home, we drive her growth.’ We are an African financial services organisation with a clear understanding of the challenges and opportunities in our countries of operation. We see it as our core job to develop commercially sound ways to address these challenges, thereby accelerating economic growth and human development and making a better life for our fellow Africans.
SEE moreAn account of our social, economic and environmental impacts and how these contribute to our sustainability and ability to achieve our purpose. It includes our environmental, social and governance report, and Standard Bank South Africa’s transformation report.
We recognise that we cannot achieve our purpose ‘Africa is our home, we drive her growth’ without our stakeholders. That’s why we engage with our stakeholders on a regular basis, to understand their concerns, build relationships, and develop partnerships.
On this page:An account of our social, economic and environmental impacts and how these contribute to our sustainability and ability to achieve our purpose. It includes our environmental, social and governance report, and Standard Bank South Africa’s transformation report.
We have a series of internal policies, procedures and controls
in place to ensure that accurate data is provided. Our group
social and ethics committee provided oversight of this report.
PricewaterhouseCoopers provided limited external assurance on
selected performance data in this report, indicated by
a , in accordance with the International Standard on Assurance
Engagements (ISAE 3000). The scope of the assurance
engagement and the statement of assurance are provided in
this section.
An account of our social, economic and environmental impacts and how these contribute to our sustainability and ability to achieve our purpose. It includes our environmental, social and governance report, and Standard Bank South Africa’s transformation report.
In 2017, we began our journey on impact reporting, identifying the areas of impact that our core business has on the societies in which we operate. Here you will find an overview of the progress made in 2018 in further refining our SEE impact areas.
SEE moreAn account of our social, economic and environmental impacts and how these contribute to our sustainability and ability to achieve our purpose. It includes our environmental, social and governance report, and Standard Bank South Africa’s transformation report.
Our report is structured according to six areas in which we believed that Standard Bank could make a significant positive social, economic and environmental (SEE) impact.
On this page:An account of our social, economic and environmental impacts and how these contribute to our sustainability and ability to achieve our purpose. It includes our environmental, social and governance report, and Standard Bank South Africa’s transformation report.
Accessible and convenient digital channels are essential to broaden and deepen financial inclusion across the continent. We’re keenly aware of our responsibility to ensure that our customers have a clear understanding of our products and services, and how to use them cost-effectively. We’re committed to partnering with our customers during difficult times, and endeavour to work with our customers to develop workable solutions when they find themselves struggling to repay their debt.
Summary Enabling home ownership to improve financial inclusion Digital solutions to improve access and affordability Cutting waiting times in branches to serve our customers better Helping customers make informed financial decisions through consumer education Helping our customers save, invest and plan for the future Our diverse transactional channels provide multiple ways to bank Protecting people’s wealth Generating revenues that drive economic growthAn account of our social, economic and environmental impacts and how these contribute to our sustainability and ability to achieve our purpose. It includes our environmental, social and governance report, and Standard Bank South Africa’s transformation report.
Micro, small and medium enterprises are key drivers of economic growth and job creation across Africa. But many struggle to move from start-up businesses to sustainable firms with the potential to expand and employ others.
Summary Incubators and training Developing economic opportunities with fintech entrepreneurs in Africa Finance for entrepreneurs to grow their businesses Improving financial access with digital solutions for SMEs Helping businesses to thriveAn account of our social, economic and environmental impacts and how these contribute to our sustainability and ability to achieve our purpose. It includes our environmental, social and governance report, and Standard Bank South Africa’s transformation report.
Standard Bank works with governments, development finance institutions and other commercial banks to structure and provide appropriate financial solutions to address Africa’s infrastructure gaps, with appropriate risk sharing arrangements.
Inadequate power, water, transport and telecommunications infrastructure inhibits Africa’s economic growth and potential for job creation and human development. The African Development Bank has estimated that Africa needs USD170 billion per year in infrastructure investment.
Summary Investing in renewable energy Financing transport infrastructure to boost trade Expanding telecommunications infrastructure Funding water infrastructure, an increasingly scarce resourceAn account of our social, economic and environmental impacts and how these contribute to our sustainability and ability to achieve our purpose. It includes our environmental, social and governance report, and Standard Bank South Africa’s transformation report.
Africa’s growth depends on her people having access to quality education, and the promotion of skills training and lifelong learning opportunities in the context of the fourth industrial revolution.
Standard Bank supports this in various ways. We work with partners in the education and corporate sectors to address the challenge of affordable and accessible student finance, including through innovative models such as our Feenix crowd-funding platform in South Africa.
Summary Funding higher education for Africa’s youth Helping young people to enter the workplace Supporting quality schooling Supporting early childhood developmentAn account of our social, economic and environmental impacts and how these contribute to our sustainability and ability to achieve our purpose. It includes our environmental, social and governance report, and Standard Bank South Africa’s transformation report.
Our purpose is to drive Africa’s growth. A core part of our business is to facilitate trade and investment flows between African countries, and between African countries and global markets.
We partner with international investors to connect them to opportunities in Africa, and with African governments, SOEs and businesses to facilitate their access to global capital markets. We helped raise over USD15 billion of finance for our African clients in 2018. We’re also working with African firms, and small enterprises in particular, to improve their access to trade finance.
Summary Expanding African trade to drive Africa’s growth Celebrating our 10-year partnership with ICBC: Growing Africa-China trade and investmentAn account of our social, economic and environmental impacts and how these contribute to our sustainability and ability to achieve our purpose. It includes our environmental, social and governance report, and Standard Bank South Africa’s transformation report.
Standard Bank is a major employer in Africa, employing over 52 147 people. We encourage continuous learning and development to ensure our people are equipped to meet the demands of a rapidly changing, increasingly digital world of work. We invest in training and development at all levels, enabling us to build a strong succession pipeline of future leaders.
Summary Building and retaining local skills and capabilities in our countries of operations Investing in our people Preparing graduates for employment Preparing our people for the future world of workAn account of our social, economic and environmental impacts and how these contribute to our sustainability and ability to achieve our purpose. It includes our environmental, social and governance report, and Standard Bank South Africa’s transformation report.
Standard Bank recognises that our core business activities must contribute to the prosperity and wellbeing of the societies and environment in which we operate. This understanding defines our purpose: Africa is our home. We drive her growth, and is supported by sound environmental, social and governance (ESG) policies and outcomes.
This report provides an overview of our ESG practices and performance for 2018.
SEE moreThis report provides an overview of our environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices and performance for 2018.
Standard Bank is committed to doing the right business the right way, ensuring that our clients are treated fairly and consistently, that we adhere to global and national regulatory and governance standards, and that our decisions and actions are informed by the group’s values and ethics. As per South Africa’s King IV Code of Corporate Governance, we recognise that we are an integral part of the societies in which we operate, dependent on these societies for our licence to operate, and that we are therefore obligated, morally and legally, to act in accordance with what is good for these societies as well as what is good for the bank.
About this report Engaging our stakeholders and determining our material issues Material issues during the reporting period Our value drivers and our material issues What is our ‘SEE impact’ all about?This report provides an overview of our environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices and performance for 2018.
The greatest impact we have as a financial institution is through our financial activities. We have developed a comprehensive framework which will ensure that the group proactively identifies, manages, monitors and embeds environmental and social (E&S) risk management into its lending processes. Standard Bank aims to drive Africa’s growth with minimal negative reputational, social, economic and environmental impact.
Managing E&S risks and opportunities Managing and mitigating indirect environmental and social risk Environmental and social management system Codes, standards and guidelines Climate change risk management Responsible finance Financial instruments to promote positive social and environmental impacts Human rightsThis report provides an overview of our environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices and performance for 2018.
Climate change, coupled with the related issue of water scarcity, has emerged as a leading risk for business and society. SBG is working toward better understanding our environmental impacts and the impacts of climate change on our business. In 2018 we continued to invest in the reduction of our direct carbon footprint through energy and water monitoring and savings measures at our head offices and branches.
Our direct environmental performance Operational carbon footprint managementThis report provides an overview of our environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices and performance for 2018.
We understand that to become the leading financial services organisation in, for and across Africa, we must contribute to the long-term prosperity of the communities and countries in which we operate, by facilitating inclusive economic growth and social development.
To do this effectively we must ensure our relevance to social needs and our capacity to help advance national objectives. Our vision commits us to contributing to socioeconomic development in a way that is consistent with the nature and size of our operations in the countries we serve.
Valuing our people Diversity and inclusion Growing our peopleThis report provides an overview of our environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices and performance for 2018.
Africa’s growth depends on her people having access to quality education, and the promotion of skills training and lifelong learning opportunities in the context of the fourth industrial revolution.
Investing in communities Supporting early childhood development Supporting quality schoolingThis report provides an overview of our environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices and performance for 2018.
The group social and ethics committee is responsible for ensuring that we act ethically in relation to internal and external stakeholders, and society more broadly.
The committee meets quarterly and includes executive and non-executive directors. Key issues discussed by the committee during 2018 included progress on embedding an ethical culture in Standard Bank; group-wide principles for stakeholder engagement; measures to accelerate gender and racial transformation within South Africa, and gender equity across the group; effectiveness of group policies and processes to minimise instances and support the victims of discrimination and sexual harassment; issues raised by environmental and social rights groups; and employee wellbeing.
Promoting sound governance and integrity Governance structures and accountability Our ethics and values Conduct risk management framework Oversight and assurance Political party fundingThis report provides an overview of our environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices and performance for 2018.
We understand that responsible management of environment, health, safety and social responsibility issues is important to our growth, profitability and long-term success. This section provides a selection of our ESG performance data from 2016 – 2018.
On this page:
This report provides an overview of our environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices and performance for 2018.
Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment Generic Verification Certificate
Download PDFThis section of our reporting suite looks at how The Standard Bank of South Africa (SBSA) is enabling the transformation of South Africa’s economy through our broad-based black economic empowerment programmes.
This section of our reporting suite looks at how The Standard Bank of South Africa (SBSA) is enabling the transformation of South Africa’s economy through our broad-based black economic empowerment programmes. The report is structured according to the elements of the Financial Sector Code and covers the initiatives, projects, and strategies that are in place to drive transformation.
SEE moreThis section of our reporting suite looks at how The Standard Bank of South Africa (SBSA) is enabling the transformation of South Africa’s economy through our broad-based black economic empowerment programmes.
Enabling the transformation of South Africa’s economy aligns with our group social, economic and environmental (SEE) value driver which seeks to generate social, economic and environmental value for our stakeholders and society through our core business activities.
SEE moreThis section of our reporting suite looks at how The Standard Bank of South Africa (SBSA) is enabling the transformation of South Africa’s economy through our broad-based black economic empowerment programmes.
Standard Bank’s purpose is ‘Africa is our home, we drive her growth.’ Driving growth means an economy in which every South African, regardless of their race or gender or the social context, can access basic necessities; and an economy in which success and prosperity are the result of hard work and talent, rather than inherited privilege or personal connections. As a corporate citizen with a social responsibility, we are committed to supporting economic growth.
SEE moreThis section of our reporting suite looks at how The Standard Bank of South Africa (SBSA) is enabling the transformation of South Africa’s economy through our broad-based black economic empowerment programmes.
The report is structured according to the elements of the Financial Sector Code and covers the initiatives, projects, and strategies that are in place to drive transformation.
Standard Bank’s BEE Scorecard Ownership Management control Skills development Preferential procurement Socioeconomic development and consumer education Empowerment financing and enterprise and supplier development Access to financial servicesThis section of our reporting suite looks at how The Standard Bank of South Africa (SBSA) is enabling the transformation of South Africa’s economy through our broad-based black economic empowerment programmes.
More information about the ways in which Standard Bank is impacting on the economies and societies in which we operate.
SEE moreThis section of our reporting suite looks at how The Standard Bank of South Africa (SBSA) is enabling the transformation of South Africa’s economy through our broad-based black economic empowerment programmes.
The group social and ethics committee is responsible for ensuring that we act ethically in relation to internal and external stakeholders, and society more broadly.
The committee meets quarterly and includes executive and non-executive directors. Key issues discussed by the committee during 2018 included progress on embedding an ethical culture in Standard Bank; group-wide principles for stakeholder engagement; measures to accelerate gender and racial transformation within South Africa, and gender equity across the group; effectiveness of group policies and processes to minimise instances and support the victims of discrimination and sexual harassment; issues raised by environmental and social rights groups; and employee wellbeing.
operate in each of the business units to address client risk management matters. These committees include specific consideration of ethical considerations. The bank may choose to exit a client relationship based on consideration of commercial factors, contractual obligations to the client, compliance, reputational and other risk considerations.
Our supplier risk committee
oversees supplier relationships, including risks arising from the ethical behaviour of suppliers, as well as financial
crime and reputational risks including conflicts of interest, anti-competitive practices and human rights violations.
A new third-party risk management framework has been approved by the group risk oversight committee.
is based on the matrix operating model of the organisation. All procurement transactions must be objective, transparent and fair, in line with sound corporate governance principles, and the highest procurement and ethical standards must be applied to all such transactions. We require all our suppliers to respect basic human rights and establish a clean and safe working environment. This includes not allowing forced labour, child labour or discrimination, and paying appropriate wages, regulating working hours and respecting everyone’s freedom of association. Suppliers, consultants and contractors to the bank must comply with all the environmental and social legislation applicable, and they must follow good environmental and social practice that applies to their sector and to the goods or services supplied. The bank strives to procure goods and services that have a lesser or reduced impact on the environment and on the health and safety of workers and communities.
are core to the way we do business. We are committed to protecting client information, and adhere to the relevant codes and regulations, including South Africa’s Code of Banking Practice. Standard Bank’s data privacy policy provides for measures to ensure that the group processes personal information in a lawful and responsible manner. These measures, together with other relevant policies, inform the security safeguards necessary to protect personal information from unlawful and unauthorised access, use, destruction or loss. These measures cover all processing activities within the group. South Africa’s Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA) has been a driver for the implementation of further controls to protect client privacy. We are well prepared to meet the requirements of POPIA, and the European General Data Protection Regulation in the relevant jurisdictions. Our privacy statement and Standard Bank South Africa Limited’s Privacy statement is published on the following websites: www.standardbank.com and www.standardbank.co.za
Employees and other stakeholders can seek advice or report concerns about unethical or unlawful behaviour anonymously. Information on our policy and processes for whistle-blowing is readily available to all employees. Employees have access to an independent, confidential whistle-blowing hotline. They are actively encouraged to make use of this should they feel that the group’s values or code of ethics is being compromised. Standard Bank commits to protecting employees who whistle blow in accordance with the procedures set out in our whistleblowing policy.
serve as beacons for the behaviour and qualities that define us as we execute our strategy.
Our culture is ‘the way we do things’. Our work to shift our culture for the better recognises that how we do things is as important as the things we do. Our culture is determined by our purpose, vision, values and our approach to ethics. Our code of ethics guides us to be responsible and respectful in our dealings with all our stakeholders as we work to become Africa’s leading financial services organisation. It outlines acceptable business conduct and is an important reference point for employees acting on behalf of Standard Bank. These clearly defined parameters empower us to make faster, more confident decisions that have the interests of our clients, and the people of Africa, at heart.
We are focusing on three critical behaviours that will shift our culture and make the biggest difference in supporting our strategic journey:
The chairman and the board set the ethical tone for the group. The board, through the relevant board committees, provides oversight of the group’s activities, assesses adherence to our values and ethics, and monitors compliance with regulatory and legislative requirements, based on reporting by executive management, internal auditors and external auditors on measures implemented to ensure compliance with regulatory and legislative requirements. The group chief executive, together with the chief ethics officer, are responsible for embedding the group’s values and code of ethics across the group. They are supported by business unit ethics officers at an operational level.
Standard Bank’s code of ethics is informed by relevant anti-corruption and corporate governance legislation in our countries of operation, globally recognised standards, including the King IV Code of Governance, industry best practice, and Standard Bank’s eight corporate values. It is certified by the Ethics Institute of South Africa as conforming to the highest standards of international best practice. Our code of ethics is integrated into our governance standards and policies, our group-wide conduct programme, and our compliance training programmes. It applies to all our banking operations and is aligned to group standards, policies and procedures. It is currently published in English, French and Portuguese.
Our code of ethics and our group values serve as the primary reference for employees when resolving any ethical issue. Our employee handbook, which is available online to all employees, sets out our policies, principles and ways of working, and has a section devoted to our code of ethics and culture. Our values and ethics also form part of our employee performance management system.
All new employees are inducted into our ethics culture as part of our employee orientation programme. Internal employee engagement mechanisms are used to deliver ongoing communication on our ethics stance and culture. All employees are required to complete an online training course on our code of ethics, on an annual basis. Course content is regularly updated and incorporates learning from real incidents.
Standard Bank Group’s conduct risk framework uses a culture-led strategy to achieve the culture, ethics and conduct we expect to see from our employees. We’ve put in place effective governance structures with clear responsibility and oversight to promote fair and effective customer outcomes. The board and senior management play a prominent role in supporting awareness and embedding conduct standards.
Since launching our treating customers fairly (TCF) programme in July 2014, we’ve undertaken a significant amount of work to embed the TCF principles. This work is based on sound tenets of business ethics and is aligned to our values. As part of the evolution of the TCF journey, we have strengthened our governance environment with the institutionalisation of our conduct risk management framework. The framework defines the group’s conduct risk appetite and informs our approach to identify, assess and manage conduct risk through enhanced reporting and monitoring that considers fair customer outcomes in material business decisions.
Different areas across the group are required to complete monthly conduct dashboards, which are submitted to the relevant group management committee. Conduct dashboards monitor indicators related to conduct culture and governance. The dashboards include metrics related to employee turnover, absenteeism, registration of gifts and entertainment, personal account trading, declaration of outside business interests, data privacy and protection, and client complaints. They provide a barometer of a significant dimension of the prevailing ethical climate. All business units and corporate functions submit their conduct dashboards to group executive committee on a quarterly basis.
Our conflicts of interest policy forms part of our conflicts of interest management framework. The policy is aimed at ensuring that Standard Bank and all our employees comply with the applicable statutory and regulatory obligations by ensuring that all reasonable steps have been taken to prevent or fairly manage potential conflicts of interest, and thereby mitigate the effect that such conflicts could have on our clients, as well as the bank. The policy reflects the minimum requirements that need to be adhered to, to ensure that all reasonable steps are taken to prevent conflicts of interest from constituting or giving rise to a material risk of damage to the interests of our clients. It also serves to ensure that there are processes, procedures and mechanisms in place to identify, prevent or manage conflicts of interest to:
Our money laundering and terrorist financing control framework and structures for managing our money laundering and terrorist financing risk are designed and maintained to ensure compliance with Financial Action Task Force recommendations and in-country legislative requirements in all jurisdictions.
The South African Financial Intelligence Centre Act has been amended to incorporate a risk-based approach to compliance in relation to the anti money laundering/combating the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) regulatory framework. This includes the requirement to develop, document, maintain and implement a risk management and compliance programme that must demonstrate the group’s ability to effectively apply a risk-based approach.
Our money laundering control policy and our financial sanctions and terrorist financing policy comply with applicable statutory and regulatory obligations and ensure that:
Standard Bank manages our anti-bribery and corruption (ABC) risk in accordance with the Organisation for Economic Co‑operation and Development’s Guidance for Multinational Enterprises. Oversight of ABC is provided through the bribery and corruption review committee. An ABC risk assessment for the group was completed in 2018 and presented to the group social and ethics committee. Specialised training has been developed for areas that are perceived as being more susceptible to risk of bribery and corruption.
Our ABC policy ensures compliance with applicable statutory and regulatory obligations. It commits us to:
We’ve introduced several automated solutions across our countries of operation to improve efficiency in money laundering control and declaring outside business interests.
All Standard Bank employees must complete compulsory compliance training, which is available online and can be accessed via a computer or mobile device. Training uses case studies and course assessments and provides immediate feedback. We also hold regular ‘compliance conversations’ with a wider audience across the bank, including topics such as anti-bribery and corruption, anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism, conflicts of interest and riskbased approaches to compliance documented in compliance policies.
We track fines and penalties issued against the group to assist us to identify problems areas that need attention and to implement appropriate remedial action.
Regulatory and compliance risk
Our executives, senior management and compliance teams work together to reinforce a compliance culture across the
group. This encompasses our approach to business risk conduct, dealing with client risk and personal conduct risk. Group
compliance assists in ensuring that we continuously manage our regulatory, supervisory and conduct risk. Group
internal audit provides independent, objective assurance and advice to improve risk management, control and governance
processes. Group governance and group compliance ensure that we meet our regulatory requirements in terms of
Banks Act requirements, company law, financial sector regulation and corporate governance. We have expanded our
compliance capability over the past year and have worked closely with middle management to emphasise its role in driving
a culture of compliance at all levels across the group.
Our combined assurance model includes group internal audit, group compliance monitoring and integrated operational risk, which together ensure a coordinated approach to providing assurance on whether top risks are effectively managed in the group.
The Standard Bank Group audit committee is responsible for:
Environmental and social risk
The board’s responsibility for environmental and social (E&S) risk management oversight is delegated to the group risk
and capital management committee, which has delegated functional E&S risk responsibility to the group risk oversight
committee. This committee is responsible for ensuring effective E&S risk management in line with the bank’s risk
appetite, and overseeing the processes implemented by business unit risk committees and mandated forums. The group
environmental and social risk and finance (GESRF) team is responsible for ensuring that environmental and social
risks are identified, evaluated and managed and that green, social and carbon financing opportunities are identified
and pursued.
Standard Bank’s new E&S risk governance standard, adopted in March 2018, provides the principles under which we identify, measure, manage and report on environmental and social risk. The E&S risk governance standard aims to ensure that Standard Bank upholds its commitment to manage and mitigate negative environmental and social impacts arising from our activities, support conscious risk-taking, and enable the development and implementation of solutions with positive social and environmental impacts. It covers all forms of environmental and social risk, and applies across Standard Bank globally, while acknowledging differences in economic and social priorities and regulatory, compliance and legal frameworks in different geographies. The E&S risk governance standard will be reviewed and updated every two years to reflect changes in the bank’s strategy or to address new and emerging environmental and social perspectives.
The E&S risk governance standard is supported by the group’s revised E&S policy, also adopted in March 2018. The policy applies to the group globally and covers all legal entities across our countries of operation, with the objective of ensuring that all our operations effectively assess and manage E&S risk associated with all business transactions, irrespective of size, nature of business or location. The policy is primarily applicable to business, commercial and corporate clients, and includes our main financing products such as project finance, commercial debt and equity, short-term banking facilities and trade finance. The E&S policy is supported by the exceptions list.
Strengthening democracy through political party funding, South Africa