Cairo, Egypt, 5th of November 2025:
Standard Bank Group, Africa’s largest financial institution by assets, is set to officially launch its Representative Office in Egypt, marking a significant milestone in its long-term commitment to advancing Africa’s economic integration and cross-border growth. The launch event will take place in Cairo on 12 November 2025.
Standard Bank Group operates in 21 African countries, four global financial centres – Dubai, New York, Beijing, and London – and two offshore hubs in the Isle of Man and Jersey. Led by Group CEO Sim Tshabalala and headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa, the Group is listed on both the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE: SBK) and the Namibian Stock Exchange (NSX: SNB).
MENA Strategy
The Group’s MENA strategy has been spearheaded by a 20-year Dubai International Finance Centre (DIFC) presence and operation. Opening an office in Egypt will complement this, allowing Standard Bank to capitalise on the significant emergence of the Gulf–sub-Sahara Africa trade and investment, and further support clients in those corridors.
Strategic Opportunities
The Group’s strategic position connects Africa to other select emerging markets as well as pools of capital in developed markets, and its balanced portfolio of businesses provides significant opportunities for growth.
As of 30 June 2025, Standard Bank Group had total assets of US$191.8 billion, served 19.2 million clients, employed over 50,000 people (including Liberty), and had over 1,180 points of representation and more than 5,400 ATMs across the African continent. The group’s largest shareholder is the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), the world’s largest bank, with a 19.7% shareholding.
In addition, Standard Bank and ICBC share a strategic partnership that facilitates trade and deal flow between Africa, China, and select emerging markets.
Bank History
Standard Bank has a 163-year history in South Africa and started building a franchise outside southern Africa in the early 1990s.
In some markets, Standard Bank trades as “Stanbic Bank”. In 1992, Standard Bank acquired the operations of ANZ Grindlays Bank in eight African countries: Zimbabwe, Zambia, Kenya, Botswana, Uganda, Nigeria, Ghana, and DRC.
These acquisitions were renamed Stanbic Bank to differentiate the bank from its former major shareholder and now competitor in Africa, Chartered Bank. The name Stanbic is an acronym derived from Standard Bank Investment Corporation.
In this context, on the other hand, there are many related sector news items that you can follow. For example, we highlight the most important ones in the following list:
- Standard Chartered Expands MENA Custody Network with Egypt Launch
- Egypt’s economic outlook remains resilient amid global headwinds, says Standard Chartered
