The proposed deal will create “sustainable growth and value for shareholders,” Standard Bank CEO Sim Tshabalala told a media briefing. Aligning the banking, insurance and asset management businesses of the two companies will create a whole which is “greater than the sum of its parts,” he said.
Standard Bank is taking the opportunity of Liberty’s low market valuation to try to extend its leading position in African financial services. Tshabalala sees a “massive opportunity” in insurance in the rest of Africa given low penetration rates of around 1%.