Standard Bank partners with South Korean Woori Bank
Standard Bank today signed a Business Cooperation Agreement with Woori Bank, one of the largest commercial banks in South Korea, aimed at capturing more banking business from Korean companies operating or investing in Africa.
The agreement was signed by Standard Bank’s Global Head of Financial Institutions, Robert Cleasby and Woori Bank’s Deputy President Dong Gun Lee in Seoul, South Korea.
Mr Cleasby says: “Woori Bank has no presence in Africa and therefore a partnership with a strong African bank like Standard Bank will enable Woori Bank to extend its banking relationship with key Korean clients to its non-presence countries. Africa and South Korea’s diplomatic relations are conducive to the flow of capital from South Korea to Africa, bringing in new prospects for institutional investors.”
South Korea’s partnership with Africa is growing. The trade flow in 2014 between South Africa and South Korea was R14 billion in exports and R16 billion in imports. South Korea’s foreign direct investment in Africa has increased substantially, up to $287m in 2010, from $24.3m a decade before. Bilateral trade reached $25bn in 2011, from just under $6bn in 2000, making it one of the fastest growth performers among Africa’s external partners.
Standard Bank Group is the largest African bank by assets with a unique footprint across 20 African countries. Headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa, the group is listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange.
Standard Bank has a 153-year history in South Africa and started building a franchise outside southern Africa in the early 1990s.
The group has nearly 49 000 employees and over 1 200 branches, which enable it to deliver a complete range of services across personal and business banking, corporate and investment banking and wealth management. Standard Bank's Corporate & Investment Banking division offers its clients banking, trading, investment, risk management and advisory services to connect selected emerging markets to Africa and to each other.