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Johannesburg - Sim Tshabalala’s appointment as sole CEO of Standard Bank marks progress of transformation within the financial services sector, said Finance Minister Malusi Gigaba.
Gigaba congratulated Tshabalala in a statement issued by Treasury after the bank announced earlier on Tuesday that Tshabalala would be the sole chief executive after joint-CEO Ben Kruger stepped down.
Kruger will continue as an executive director, Standard Bank said.
Gigaba said that Tshabalala’s appointment was an affirmation of the capacity of black professionals.
“Along with the work that is currently ongoing in Parliament to address the slow pace of transformation in the financial sector, Mr Tshabalala’s appointment comes as a step in the right direction,” he added.
The financial services sector has come under criticism given the lack of transformation in the sector. Liberty’s former CEO Thabo Dloti had quit following a difference in opinion with the board about its immediate focus.
City Press previously reported on a walkout staged at Absa Capital in May after a top black manager was overlooked for a position as the head of a department.
ANC Treasurer General Zweli Mkhize has also spoken out publicly on the need for the financial sector to drive transformation in the economy.
“Ten percent of players control 80% of the entire portfolio. If we want South Africa to grow, we need to open up that space,” he said.
A preliminary report tabled at Parliament’s standing committee on finance and portfolio committee on trade and industry last Wednesday advised that the snail’s pace of transformation in the financial services sector was causing high levels of frustration, which points to a “huge social explosion looming”.
The report – which is still a work in progress – follows hearings that saw 62 submissions from a range of stakeholders, including government departments, regulatory and statutory agencies, industry bodies, business, labour, civil society, political organisations and individuals.
The draft report acknowledged that much had been done to transform the financial sector, but recommended about 80 actions that need to be implemented over time.
The committee said it did not call for an overnight overhaul of the financial sector, but "we are clear that further transformation cannot take place at a snail’s pace either".
It recommended a phased approach with immediate, short-term and long-term aims.
Standard Bank shares rose to an intra-day high of R164.45 before settling to close down 0.3% at R162.38.
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