CHRIS EGBERINK: Banking on a more inclusive minerals economy

Delegates at next week’s Mining Indaba may disagree on many issues, but all recognise the need for increased mining. We need more because ramping up the clean-energy transition requires a rapid escalation of transition materials, which can only come from intensified mining.

The sector is highly carbon- and water-intensive and often located in vulnerable or community-sensitive areas. This creates a central policy dilemma: South Africa must decarbonise, yet many mining regions depend on carbon‑intensive value chains for jobs and revenues. How do we expand supply fast enough to meet net-zero targets while cutting mining’s emissions, managing local environmental damage and ensuring a just transition for affected workers and communities?

The core of the question lies in what type of growth we want.

The South African banking sector is at the fulcrum of this debate: its project finance and working capital decisions shape which operations modernise, which suppliers grow and which communities gain economic footholds in the value chain.

If we chase volume and short‑term returns, we entrench the old extraction model; if we integrate just transition criteria, local procurement and community‑linked outcomes into our term sheets, we can turn banking into a lever for a more inclusive minerals economy.

Policy tools like the Mining Charter and sector codes aimed at promoting inclusive ownership, procurement and community development have enabled some progress, but implementation has been uneven for several reasons.

The first concerns ownership: can financing structures create genuine local equity for workers and community vehicles, rather than narrowly distributed stakes that don’t shift long‑term value? The second is about standards: global ESG frameworks are essential, but if applied mechanically, they risk overlooking local development priorities like municipal infrastructure, township enterprise development or post‑closure land use.

Third, while banks must protect depositors and investors, they are expected to support higher-risk segments such as small community-based suppliers and early-stage rehabilitation projects. The solution lies in a blend of public, private and concessional capital so these become bankable without transferring all risk to the state.

We face significant challenges: a $170bn annual infrastructure gap and a global demand for critical minerals set to increase sixfold by 2050. As bankers, we cannot simply advise an abrupt capital withdrawal. Our role has evolved from capital providers to architects of transformation.

By bridging the financing gap through innovative models and strategic connectivity, we can ensure South Africa’s mineral wealth powers a prosperous future for all. Banks influence outcomes through the conditions attached to capital and credit decisions, tying terms to local procurement, emissions intensity and inclusion targets, thereby aligning corporate balance sheets with community priorities. The opportunity for transformative impact is enormous.

Historical extraction patterns that left communities in a precarious state must be replaced by a “social beneficiation” model. This means moving beyond a compliance-driven approach to social and labour plans. We should aim for “community-linked” outcomes, where mining investments create sustainable local economies that endure beyond the mine’s life.

For example, Sibanye-Stillwater has established funds that provided more than R700m in loans to support small, medium-sized and micro-enterprises (SMMEs). Standard Chartered helped establish a $1bn fund with the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and Appian Capital Advisory, aimed at supporting responsible, high-impact mining projects critical to energy, industry and digital technologies in emerging markets.

The finance sector must develop a sequenced investment strategy that supports equitable mining growth. Applied to mining, this approach can support cleaner logistics, safer operations and more resilient local suppliers, while still giving clients access to competitive borrowing costs. On the asset side, thematic instruments like green and social bonds demonstrate how banks can pool projects into diversified portfolios that attract institutional investors to climate and inclusion priorities across Southern Africa.

We have pledged to mobilise $300bn in sustainable finance by 2030 and our innovation hubs are designed to scale solutions in adaptation and the circular economy. This is not just a “numbers game”. It is about fostering innovative financial models, like blended finance, strategically combining concessional funds from development finance institutions with commercial capital, lowering project costs and mitigating risk perceptions for private investors.

Whether by supporting female-led SMEs or providing trade finance facilities with the IFC and British International Investment, we are committed to making financial inclusion central to our growth strategy. By leveraging public-private collaboration and innovative finance, we can ensure the “scramble” for critical minerals becomes a race towards shared prosperity.

Success can no longer be measured solely by raw ore exports but must connect the mineral potential to a sustainable future. We are on the cusp of a critical mineral revolution, where intensified extraction of transition minerals must drive a more equitable, industrialised and inclusive South Africa. This success will be defined not by balance sheets, but by the legacy of transformation in the communities we serve.

• Egberink is group CEO and head of banking & coverage: South Africa at Standard Chartered.