STANDARD Bank Group plans to open a new office in Egypt as Africa’s largest lender by assets looks to benefit from rising trade between the continent and the Middle East.
The bank will open the new representative office by the end of the year, according to Rassem Zok, who leads Standard Bank’s operations across the Middle East and North Africa region. The Johannesburg-based lender’s presence already spans 20 African markets.
The move comes as Standard Bank’s business outside of South Africa overtook its home market as the biggest driver of profits in 2023. While headline earnings inched up 3% for the South Africa business, profits from the rest of the business soared 49%. – Bloomberg.