April 23, 2025
Standard Bank Group

British lender Standard Chartered announced today it would slash its presence in Africa and the Middle East as it looks to cut costs and simplify its business.
The FTSE 100 emerging markets lender said it would fully exit Angola, Cameroon, Gambia, Jordan, Lebanon, Sierra Leone and Zimbabwe, as well as close its retail banking operations in Tanzania and Ivory Coast, to focus solely on corporate banking.
Bosses confirmed the firm would continue to serve clients in the markets from its international network but was looking to simplify its global structure.
“We are sharpening our focus on the most significant opportunities for growth while also simplifying our business,” said Bill Winters, the bank’s chief executive.
“We remain excited by a number of opportunities we see in the AME region, as illustrated by our new markets, but remain disciplined in our assessment of where we can deliver significantly improved shareholder returns.”
The move marks an about turn for the bank after it became one of the biggest lenders to invest in the region when others banks were pulling back.
The markets being shed generated around one per cent of the firm’s annual income and profits, bosses said.
The firm said it is now planning to direct fund towards higher growth markets, having recently opened a branch in Saudi Arabia and earned a banking licence in Egypt.
City AM

72 thoughts on “Standard Chartered pulls back from Africa and Middle East in cost cutting push 

  1. Hey! I could have sworn I’ve been to this website before but after reading through some of the post I realized it’s new to me. Anyways, I’m definitely glad I found it and I’ll be bookmarking and checking back frequently!

  2. Hey very nice website!! Man .. Excellent .. Amazing .. I’ll bookmark your website and take the feeds also…I’m happy to find so many useful info here in the post, we need work out more strategies in this regard, thanks for sharing. . . . . .

  3. The other day, while I was at work, my cousin stole my iphone and tested to see if it can survive a thirty foot drop, just so she can be a youtube sensation. My iPad is now broken and she has 83 views. I know this is entirely off topic but I had to share it with someone!

  4. Good post. I learn one thing more difficult on different blogs everyday. It will always be stimulating to learn content material from other writers and follow a bit one thing from their store. I’d choose to use some with the content on my weblog whether or not you don’t mind. Natually I’ll provide you with a link on your web blog. Thanks for sharing.

  5. Kantorbola merupakan pilihan terbaik bagi para penggemar slot online di Indonesia. Dengan berbagai permainan menarik, bonus melimpah, keamanan terjamin, dan layanan pelanggan yang unggul.

  6. Daftar dan login ke Kantorbola versi terbaru untuk pengalaman bermain bola online terbaik. Ikuti panduan lengkap kami untuk akses mudah, fitur unggulan, dan keamanan terjamin.

  7. Amazing blog! Is your theme custom made or did you download it from somewhere? A design like yours with a few simple tweeks would really make my blog shine. Please let me know where you got your design. Many thanks

  8. When I originally commented I clicked the “Notify me when new comments are added” checkbox and now each time a comment is added I get several e-mails with the same comment. Is there any way you can remove me from that service? Thank you!

  9. This design is wicked! You most certainly know how to keep a reader amused. Between your wit and your videos, I was almost moved to start my own blog (well, almost…HaHa!) Great job. I really enjoyed what you had to say, and more than that, how you presented it. Too cool!

  10. Excellent read, I just passed this onto a colleague who was doing some research on that. And he actually bought me lunch because I found it for him smile So let me rephrase that: Thank you for lunch! “The future is not something we enter. The future is something we create.” by Leonard I. Sweet.

  11. Attractive section of content. I just stumbled upon your website and in accession capital to assert that I acquire in fact enjoyed account your blog posts. Anyway I’ll be subscribing to your feeds and even I achievement you access consistently rapidly.

  12. AI is evolving so fast! I can’t wait to see how it transforms our daily lives in the next decade. The possibilities are endless, from automation to medical advancements.

  13. Nothing beats homemade pasta. The texture and flavor are just on another level compared to store-bought versions. Cooking from scratch is truly an art.

  14. Christopher Nolan’s storytelling is always mind-blowing. Every movie feels like a masterpiece, and the way he plays with time and perception is just genius.

  15. The essence of existence is like smoke, always shifting, always changing, yet somehow always present. It moves with the wind of thought, expanding and contracting, never quite settling but never truly disappearing. Perhaps to exist is simply to flow, to let oneself be carried by the great current of being without resistance.

  16. All knowledge, it is said, comes from experience, but does that not mean that the more we experience, the wiser we become? If wisdom is the understanding of life, then should we not chase every experience we can, taste every flavor, walk every path, and embrace every feeling? Perhaps the greatest tragedy is to live cautiously, never fully opening oneself to the richness of being.

  17. Howdy very cool web site!! Man .. Excellent .. Superb .. I’ll bookmark your blog and take the feeds additionally…I am satisfied to search out so many helpful information right here in the put up, we need develop extra techniques on this regard, thanks for sharing. . . . . .

  18. Time is often called the soul of motion, the great measure of change, but what if it is merely an illusion? What if we are not moving forward but simply circling the same points, like the smoke from a burning fire, curling back onto itself, repeating patterns we fail to recognize? Maybe the past and future are just two sides of the same moment, and all we ever have is now.

  19. Virtue, they say, lies in the middle, but who among us can truly say where the middle is? Is it a fixed point, or does it shift with time, perception, and context? Perhaps the middle is not a place but a way of moving, a constant balancing act between excess and deficiency. Maybe to be virtuous is not to reach the middle but to dance around it with grace.

  20. Man is said to seek happiness above all else, but what if true happiness comes only when we stop searching for it? It is like trying to catch the wind with our hands—the harder we try, the more it slips through our fingers. Perhaps happiness is not a destination but a state of allowing, of surrendering to the present and realizing that we already have everything we need.

  21. The potential within all things is a mystery that fascinates me endlessly. A tiny seed already contains within it the entire blueprint of a towering tree, waiting for the right moment to emerge. Does the seed know what it will become? Do we? Or are we all simply waiting for the right conditions to awaken into what we have always been destined to be?

  22. Virtue, they say, lies in the middle, but who among us can truly say where the middle is? Is it a fixed point, or does it shift with time, perception, and context? Perhaps the middle is not a place but a way of moving, a constant balancing act between excess and deficiency. Maybe to be virtuous is not to reach the middle but to dance around it with grace.

  23. If everything in this universe has a cause, then surely the cause of my hunger must be the divine order of things aligning to guide me toward the ultimate pleasure of a well-timed meal. Could it be that desire itself is a cosmic signal, a way for nature to communicate with us, pushing us toward the fulfillment of our potential? Perhaps the true philosopher is not the one who ignores his desires, but the one who understands their deeper meaning.

  24. The essence of existence is like smoke, always shifting, always changing, yet somehow always present. It moves with the wind of thought, expanding and contracting, never quite settling but never truly disappearing. Perhaps to exist is simply to flow, to let oneself be carried by the great current of being without resistance.

  25. Hiya, I’m really glad I’ve found this information. Nowadays bloggers publish just about gossips and net and this is really annoying. A good website with exciting content, that is what I need. Thanks for keeping this website, I will be visiting it. Do you do newsletters? Cant find it.

  26. Howdy just wanted to give you a brief heads up and let you know a few of the pictures aren’t loading correctly. I’m not sure why but I think its a linking issue. I’ve tried it in two different internet browsers and both show the same outcome.

  27. Very good written information. It will be beneficial to everyone who utilizes it, as well as me. Keep doing what you are doing – can’r wait to read more posts.

  28. This design is incredible! You most certainly know how to keep a reader entertained. Between your wit and your videos, I was almost moved to start my own blog (well, almost…HaHa!) Great job. I really enjoyed what you had to say, and more than that, how you presented it. Too cool!

  29. If everything in this universe has a cause, then surely the cause of my hunger must be the divine order of things aligning to guide me toward the ultimate pleasure of a well-timed meal. Could it be that desire itself is a cosmic signal, a way for nature to communicate with us, pushing us toward the fulfillment of our potential? Perhaps the true philosopher is not the one who ignores his desires, but the one who understands their deeper meaning.

  30. Friendship, some say, is a single soul residing in two bodies, but why limit it to two? What if friendship is more like a great, endless web, where each connection strengthens the whole? Maybe we are not separate beings at all, but parts of one vast consciousness, reaching out through the illusion of individuality to recognize itself in another.

  31. The cosmos is said to be an ordered place, ruled by laws and principles, yet within that order exists chaos, unpredictability, and the unexpected. Perhaps true balance is not about eliminating chaos but embracing it, learning to see the beauty in disorder, the harmony within the unpredictable. Maybe to truly understand the universe, we must stop trying to control it and simply become one with its rhythm.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *