Nedbank has prised another experienced executive from FNB’s ranks as it looks to gain market share and be a formidable player in businesses banking, a sector that FNB leads.
FNB veteran of 23 years, Daniel Kaan, has joined Nedbank’s ranks as its managing executive for small and medium enterprises (SMEs). Kaan’s most recent role at FNB was that of CEO for core banking and lending, having also previously held the position of CEO for business core banking, among several other leadership roles at FNB.
His appointment, which came into effect in January, comes months after Andiswa Bata left her role as FNB business banking chief to join Nedbank as group managing executive of its business and commercial unit as the battle for market share in the hotly contested business banking sector intensifies.
Nedbank has already splashed out R1.65bn buying iKhokha, one of Africa’s fastest-growing fintech companies.
The transaction gave Nedbank a sizeable business, which it said processes more than R20bn annually in digital payments and has distributed more than R3bn in working capital to small and medium-sized enterprises so far.
Nedbank, under Jason Quinn, is sharpening its claws to win market share in the business banking segment as SME lending has emerged as the next battleground among the country’s lenders, driven by enhanced digital capabilities at incumbent banks and the entry of non-traditional competitors.
Quinn joined Nedbank from Absa in 2024 and immediately embarked on a shake-up of its retail and business banking divisions.
The reorganisation involved the creation of business and commercial banking, a juristic-focused cluster that will cover SMEs and commercial clients.
Nedbank is restructuring the business to also increase emphasis on mid-sized corporates, typically those businesses with an annual revenue of R1bn and above, with the lender targeting a market share of 25%.
Battle for market share
The battle for market share in business and commercial baking, particularly in the SME and mid-sized markets, is becoming a highly contested space in South Africa’s banking sector.
Capitec aims to replicate its retail banking success in business banking, targeting SMEs and businesses in the informal sector.
In 2019 the bank made a foray into the competitive business banking arena by buying Mercantile Bank from Portuguese state-owned banking group Caixa Geral de Depósitos in a deal worth R3.5bn.
Investec, known for its corporate and investment banking prowess, in November launched a commercial banking unit that bundles private banking, business lending and advisory services under one roof in a strategic bid to pry small business owners from mainstream banks and reshape competition in the R600bn-plus loan pool.
The Anglo-South African group aims to amass about 1,500 corporate midmarket segment companies a year until 2030, a market in which the company said it has the capabilities to win.
The lender is targeting businesses with annual revenues of R30m-R1.5bn, with a bias toward businesses with a turnover of at least R100m, and would be selective in onboarding those businesses with a turnover of less than R100m.
Standard Bank and Absa also have large business banking portfolios.
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