Standard Bank Group, Africa's largest bank by assets, announced on 14 August 2025, alongside its interim results, that its chief executive officer Sim Tshabalala will retire at the end of 2027, with the board initiating a formal process to identify his successor.
Tshabalala has served as chief executive since 2013 (jointly with Ben Kruger until 2017). Under his leadership, Standard Bank's total assets grew from R1.95 trillion in 2017 to R3.27 trillion in 2024. The group operates in 20 African countries and has a strategic relationship with Industrial and Commercial Bank of China.
CFO ALSO PLANS TO DEPART
Chief financial officer Arno Daehnke, who has held the CFO position since 2016, is also expected to retire around the same time as Tshabalala.
SUCCESSION PROCESS
Standard Bank confirmed that the CEO succession process is formally under way, and Tshabalala pointed to Standard Bank's long tradition of promoting from within, saying: "We grow our own timber at Standard Bank."