The brains trust of Standard Bank were paid more than R400m in the 2023 financial year after the group reported a surge in profit and returned nearly R30bn to shareholders.
Group CEO Sim Tshabalala’s total remuneration came in at R83m, mostly consisting of incentives, which is an increase from the R55.5m he earned in the previous year.
Standard Bank CFO Arno Daehnke’s compensation was R68m, inclusive of incentives, while COO Margaret Nienaber earned R59.7m.
The windfall comes after the lender in March reported a 27% increase in headline earnings to R43bn in the year to end-December.
The “Big Blue”, as the lender is referred to in high finance due to the size of its balance sheet, also paid out R27bn in dividends to shareholders in the period, taking its dividend tally to nearly R50bn in the past two financial years.
The group’s return on equity went up to 18.8% from 16.3% in 2022, and it ended the year under review with 15.5-million personal and private banking customers in 15 African countries, as well as 818,000 business and commercial banking customers.
Its corporate and investment banking (CIB) unit generated R51bn in client revenues from 20 jurisdictions.
The insurance and asset management business had R1.5-trillion assets under management. All in all, the group ended the year under review with R3.1-trillion in assets under management, up from R2.9-trillion in the prior year.
The CIB business, headed by Kenny Fihla, contributes 46% of the group’s headline earnings. It provides finance for large-scale infrastructure projects, including renewable and non-renewable energy projects, and infrastructure related to water, transport, telecommunications and housing. Its clients include government-owned energy utilities, mining companies and other large-scale industries.
CIB reported income of R73.6bn in the year under review, up from R53.4bn in the previous corresponding period. This performance saw Fihla’s pay come in at R69.9m, nearly R20m more than his 2022 remuneration.
The personal and business banking unit, under the stewardship of Funeka Montjane, accounts for 25% of the lender’s bottom line. It reported headline earnings of R10.7bn and return on equity of 22.4%, up from 17.7% in the prior period, performance that saw Montjane’s remuneration increase to R59.5m from R37.1m.
The bank’s business and commercial banking unit reported strong growth in return on equity of 37%, from 30.2%. The unit, headed by Bill Blackie, reported income of R38bn from R32bn a year before. Blackie’s remuneration rose to R46m from R34m.
“There are various measurable aspects to these objectives that we consider for reward purposes. However, there is also an element of judgment taken by Remco [the remuneration committee] to consider the overall picture, with an eye on the future, and to assess executives for nonfinancial performance accordingly,” reads the remuneration report.
Sustainable financing
“Of topical relevance here is the group’s meaningful role in financing and facilitating a just energy transition for an under-electrified continent, while helping to reduce carbon emissions in line with global commitments. The work that the group has done on sustainable financing is laudable, supporting individuals as well as businesses and governments through this epoch-defining transition.”
SA accounts for the majority of the group’s income, followed by Southern and Central Africa, which includes Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The group’s largest impact is concentrated in SA and its neighbouring countries, while Africa region countries contribute 42% to the group’s headline earnings.
The remuneration report shows the group invested R53.5bn in its workforce through salaries and other incentives. The bank employs more than 54,000 people, with the bulk in SA.
The group remuneration committee approved 6.5% increases to basic salaries across the group and a 5.4% average increase to cost-to-company packages for managers and executives in SA. “The minimum banking guaranteed package was increased to R244,920 per annum.”
Voluntary turnover for the group’s workforce stands at 5%, which it said was a key indicator to its ability to retain talent.
“Clear evidence of the personal growth of our people lies in the fact that more than 60% of our vacancies last year were filled internally, and 11% of the group’s workforce was promoted to take on roles of greater responsibility and complexity,” the lender said.
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.