StanChart focuses on business clients
Isaac Pinielo | Tuesday May 26, 2015 18:00
Speaking at a breakfast meeting yesterday, the bank’s global head of segments, retail clients, Euan Campbell said Standard Chartered could help businesses build trading links for imports and exports, and cross-border cash management.
“With our presence in the major Africa economies in the East and West as well as most of Asia and the Middle East, we have full corporate banking capabilities in Africa and China, where we have had a presence for more than 150 years,” he said.
He noted that the business environment is improving, adding that with many African markets now looking to drive transparency and accountability, there is a conscious move to improve funding for small and medium enterprises.
Campbell further indicated that credit bureaus now exist in many markets in Africa, creating a vibrant environment for small enterprises to grow. He applauded government’s efforts in actively supporting and nurturing the growth of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) by providing funding, setting up enterprise development agencies like Citizen Entrepreneurship Development Agency (CEDA) and Local Enterprise Authority (LEA).
“We also applaud the government for splitting bigger tenders into smaller ones so that smaller businesses can participate. All these bode well in nurturing a dynamic and fast growing SME sector in Botswana,” he said.
According to Campbell, trade landscape is changing as international and intra-regional trade is growing. He said Africa and Botswana could explore this changing trend and go more international. “Africa’s trade with other emerging markets in Asia and the Middle East are rapidly growing. For example, China is currently Africa’s by far largest trading partner, exchanging about $160 billion-worth of goods a year. And China’s engagement with Africa is expected to grow,” he said.
He pointed out that Africa’s economic momentum is on the rise adding that Botswana is one of the smallest, but yet a high-performing country in Africa, driven mainly by a better business environment, fast urbanisation, an expanding labour force and the rise of the middle class.
In addition, Campbell stated that technology is enabling, adding that it opens up new markets and enables businesses to expand their reach. He said innovative and technology-based SMEs could provide an interesting platform for expanding outside of domestic borders, and entering intra-regional and international markets.
Campbell added that the bank aims to use technology to provide its business clients with convenient and hassle-free service, so they could focus on building their businesses.
“We have had the privilege of serving over 70,000 business clients across Africa and among the main lenders to small businesses in key African markets,” he said.