About Standard Chartered Bank in Kenya

In Kenya, the Bank was established in 1911 with the first branch being opened in Mombasa Treasury Square as its headquarters. On the same day, another branch was opened on Government Road now known as Kenyatta Avenue in Nairobi.

Then known as Standard Bank of South Africa, the Bank was the first foreign bank to establish presence in Kenya. In 1930, as Nairobi was becoming increasingly favoured as the capital of the colony, the bank moved its headquarters to Nairobi.

In 1957, the Bank reinforced its commitment to this market by putting up a multimillion shilling headquarters on Hardinge Street (Moi Avenue). Then, Stanbank House was the most modern building in Nairobi.

As the Bank continued to grow, with branches spread across the country, it floated the largest share offer on the local stock exchange offering 21 million shares for sale. At that time, the offer was oversubscribed by 137 percent forcing the bank to cut down on allotment.

Today, 100 years later, Standard Chartered Bank is one of the leading Banks in Kenya, with an excellent franchise.  It has a total of 33 branches spread across the country, 84 automated teller machines (ATMs) and 1,600 employees.

Standard Chartered bank has local share holdings of 25%, comprising 34,000 Kenyans. It has remained a public quoted company on the Nairobi Stock Exchange since 1989.

We are the oldest foreign bank in Kenya and enjoy a market share of approximately 27%.  Our capital, deposit base, and lending portfolio is reported in Kenya Shillings, and we offer a variety of local and foreign currency accounts, both deposit and loan, to our customers.  We are also one of the leading lenders to the Kenyan agricultural sector.

Our network of branches spans throughout Kenya. Corporate and institutional business is handled mainly out of the three major cities in Kenya: Nairobi, Mombasa, Kisumu and in Eldoret town.

Standard Chartered Bank Kenya Limited has since 1996 centralised the back office operations of all its branches into one central location with a real-time accounting system, which is a considerable advantage.  Benefits of centralization include streamlined processes, improved service levels, increased efficiency and a standardized approach to our product offering.

Further underpinning its importance, Standard Chartered Bank Kenya Limited is the regional Shared Service Centre hub supporting the Bank’s technology operations in Uganda, Tanzania, Zambia and Botswana and South Africa on a real time basis.

Major Milestones

1911

On December 4, 1910 the first manager-to-be was rowed to shore to set up the Standard Chartered Bank’s first branch in Mombasa.  An Arab building on Vasco da Gama Street provided the premises for Standard Chartered in Kenya and a branch was opened in 1911.In Nairobi, a second branch was opened on Government Road - now Kenyatta Avenue.  100 years later, the Bank in one of the most profitable financial institution with 33 branches,  184 ATMs countrywide and  assets valued at over KShs145 billion.

1912

The Bank’s third branch was opened in Eldoret, the heart of the white settlers. This was semi-permanent structures opened to cater for the country’s agricultural stronghold which was also the country’s main food basked. Since then, the Bank has continued to support the growth of the country’s main economic sector offering world class financial products and services.

1957

In 1957, Standard Chartered put up an ultra modern headquarters on Moi Avenue, then known as Hardinge Street. At the time, Stanbank House was described as’ imposing’ as it was the tallest and most modern building in the city. This has been the bank’s headquarters until this year when it moved to ultra-modern green building in Chiromo.

1989

Standard Chartered leads the way in technological innovation. 1989 saw a revolution in the banking industry when Standard Chartered officially introduced its ATMs known as Moneylink. The service was officially opened by the then Minister for  Technical Training and Applied technology Prof. Sam Ongeri who used his card to withdraw KSh1,000 in two-hundred notes denominations. Moneylink was first located at the Bank’s headquarters on Moi Avenue and moved to Mombasa soon after.

1989

In 1989, the Bank’s shares were listed at the Nairobi Stock Exchange for the first time when the bank offered 21 million shares at the cost of KShs.14.50 per share. The share offer saw an oversubscription of 400 million shares. The offer was the single largest placing in the history of the local exchange. Since then, the Bank has continued to give a profitable return on investment and is the largest dividend payer on the Nairobi Stock Exchange.

1995

Standard Chartered was the first Bank in Kenya to centralize its operations to interconnect all its branches countrywide. From the centralization, customers could transact from any branch regardless of the location. This was later adopted by other banks as the industry continued to grow.

2003

In 2003, Standard Chartered took a leap of faith to sponsor the largest sporting event in Kenya.  From a humble beginning with 4,000 participants in 2003, the Standard Chartered Marathon has grown in leaps and bounds  to attract over 15,000 runners and raised millions of shilling for Seeing is Believing, the Bank’s flagship sustainability initiative.

Seeing is Believing

Seeing is Believing is the Standard Chartered CSR initiative aimed at eradicating avoidable blindness in the world. Globally, the Bank is funding eye care in I20 cities across the world and has raised over USD17 million and benefitted over 20 million people across the world.

In Kenya, the Banks has restored site to over 4,000 children and is working with five hospitals across Kenya where its funding cataract, glaucoma and trauma related surgeries to children under the age of nine years.

2007

Standard Chartered has always been on the forefront in product innovation and invention and has led the way in market segmentation providing tailor-made financial solutions to its customers. In 2007, the bank launched Diva Club Account, the first women only banking product that took the market by surprise. The account comes with lifestyle benefits where customers enjoy discounts at selected outlets countrywide.

2009

Technology is Standard Chartered strength and in 2009, the Bank introduced mBanking, its mobile banking platform built on Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) technology.  mBanking compliments our bank's philosophy of striving to meet customer needs and lifestyles by offering delivery channels that are in line with current and anticipated future needs.

2011

In 2011, Standard Chartered cemented its commitment to the Kenyan market with the move to a KShs.3.3 billion ultra modern headquarters on Chiromo Road. StandardChartered@Chiromo is a green building that is constructed with the aim achieving a GOLD LEED status from the Leadership in Environmental and Energy design (LEED). This is in line with the Bank’s commitment to ‘protecting the environment in all the markers in which it operates.

Awards in the recent past

• Best Bank in Kenya, Euromoney
• Best Bank in Kenya by Think Business – 2011, 2010.
• Named “The Most Respected Company of the Year (2005) Financial Services Sector by the Nation Media Group and PriceWaterHouseCoopers.
• Awarded Corporate of the Year Bank by Market Intelligence (2005/6/7). Market Intelligence, a leading respected business and finance journal.
• Silver Prix for Most Promising New Product 2005 (Kenya’s Fixed Rate Home Loan)Grand Prix Gold Award 2005 by  IFS/Deloitte Financial Innovation Awards.
• Second runners up for the Warrior Awards, Best New Product/Service Launch category, by the Marketing Society of Kenya for our marketing campaign on Home loans by Marketing Society of Kenya.
• Awarded ‘Bank of the Year’ Award (2000, 2001 & 2003) by Most Respected Financial Institution in Kenya (2003).
• ‘Financial Reporting Excellence Award’ (2001/ 2002/2007/2008/2009/2010).
• ‘Public Relations Society of Kenya Excellence Award’ for the 2001 Annual Report and Accounts and for HIV/AIDS Staying Alive Campaign in 2002.
• Voted ‘Best Foreign Bank in Kenya’ (1999 & 2000/ 2010) by Euromoney Magazine Awards of Excellence.
• Named fifth Most Respected Company in East Africa (2000 & 2002/2005/2007) by Price Waterhouse Coopers and Nation Media Group Survey.
• Was the first Kenyan Bank to be awarded the ISO 9002 certification in technology systems.
• Opened the first ATM in Kenya and first Automated Banking Centre for 24-hour convenience.
• First utility bill payment and satellite television payment over ATM.
• First to introduce Priority Banking facilities in Kenya for more affluent customers.
• First to launch International Photo Debit Card.
• First to introduce Unsecured Personal Loan.
• First to launch Mobile Top-Up scheme.
• First to launch Banking Business Solutions for corporate customers.
• The Banker’s Award for Bank of the Year – Africa plus individual country awards in Tanzania, Botswana and Zimbabwe, The Banker, September 2003.
• Standard Chartered Bank ‘Living with HIV’ was awarded the Global Business Coalition on HIV AIDS Workplace Award for Business Excellence in 2003.