New StanChart CEO takes office amid market share war

New Standard Chartered Kenya CEO Lamin Manjang Thursday took over the local operations with competition from indigenous banks his biggest challenge.

Mr Manjang, 48, assumed the helm at the Kenyan unit of the multinational bank following the appointment of Richard Etemesi to head the lender’s South African unit.

He joins the Kenyan unit from StanChart Oman where he was the chief executive and comes in at a time when the Nairobi bourse listed lender has lost out in the profit ranking to indigenous banks led by KCB Group, Equity and Co-operative Bank.

Analysts expect the new CEO will face a vicious fight for control of market share pitting the top five lenders, especially nimbler rivals like Equity and Co-operative Bank.

But it remains to be seen whether he will stick with StanChart’s model of focusing on corporate banking and serving the middle class or it will spread its reach to capture the low-end of the market—which turned Equity Bank to a top tier lender.

In 2006, StanChart was ranked as Kenya’s second profitable lender behind Barclays Bank. The bank is now ranked fourth based on the financial statements for the period to September.

Mr Etemesi was the first Kenyan to head the bank’s local operations when he was appointed CEO in November 2006.

Mr Manjang is from Gambia, but he is not new to the region having served as StanChart Uganda chief executive before his Oman move in August 2011.

Besides Kenya, he will man StanChart’s East Africa operations. The bank’s Africa executive appointments were made on December 10.

At the Nairobi Securities Exchange, the bank’s share price has remained little changed.

It’s now trading at Sh309 up from Tuesday’s close of Sh304 and Sh298 on December 11.  

Mr Etemesi, 51, will take his new role in Johannesburg as CEO South Africa & Southern Africa once all local regulatory requirements have been approved and concluded, the bank said earlier. He will also be in charge of StanChart operations in Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Mauritius in the new role.

READ: Etemesi moves to StanChart South Africa as CEO

The executive shifts at StanChart come in a year when the local banking scene has changed CEOs at the quickest pace, ushering in new leaders in an industry that has maintained double-digit growth the past five years.

Four of the banks listed at the Nairobi bourse have this year made changes to their corner offices including Barclays, NIC Bank and KCB Group.

Most of the appointments were Kenyans in the diaspora. This includes John Gachora (NIC Bank), Jeremy Awori (Barclays Bank of Kenya) and Munir Ahmed (National Bank).