The Chief Executive, Wealth Africa Regions at Standard Bank, Deon De Klerk has said that though the notion of wealth means different things to different people, Standard Bank operates on the principle that wealth is for everyone.

Speaking on the first day of the ‘Grow Together Master Class’ organized by Stanbic Bank at Labadi Beach Hotel, De Klerk said that wealth is not the preserve of only high net worth individuals (HNWI) but for everyone who is interested in his/her financial security.

“From the very basic needs to medium needs and from high net worth individuals to corporate needs, we have a brief case with about 120 different products ranging from short-term insurance, life insurance, investments, real estates and trust, offshore banking services to offshore investments. These are the building blocks of wealth solutions and these different solutions are applicable to different segments depending on how much one earns”.

It is therefore based on this principle, that the Standard Bank Group, the parent company of Stanbic Bank, has developed the capabilities, products and services to provide the full range of non-banking financial services for the specific needs of individuals, according to Mr. De Klerk.

He said “Wealth means different things to different people, from basic insurance needs to families worrying about generational wealth transfer. It is for this reason that at Standard Bank, we have a wealth management portfolio that spans across all non-banking financial services channels.”.

The principle that wealth is for everyone, Mr. De Klerk said, emanates from the Standard Bank’s firm belief in the huge potential of the African continent and the commitment of the bank to drive the growth of the continent.

“The growth opportunity in Africa is a result of the very nature of the continent; the demographics, the young population, 65% of the world’s arable land, etc., all these factors combine with real political will in most of the countries to promote reforms make Africa a huge potential for wealth. We at Standard Bank are encouraged by this potential to be at the forefront in driving Africa’s growth”, Mr. De Klerk said.

The Standard Bank Group has vast access to expertise where they offer clients and their businesses easy to understand solutions that address all aspects of their business in a holistic and integrated manner. At the core of the Group’s wealth value proposition is a commitment to offer relevant and state of the art financial services.

The Grow Together Master Class is a two-day special session organized by the Standard Bank Group to equip staff and clients of the bank with the requisite knowledge and skills to advise and manage their wealth portfolios respectively.