120 years of SCB in Bangladesh: A legacy of trust, innovation and partnership
Once termed as a “banana skin bank”, SCB has become the bank of choice for many in African, Middle Eastern, and Asian countries. The bank’s contribution to Bangladesh’s development is also undeniable
When I was leaving ANZ Grindlays after almost seven years in August 1993 for Standard Chartered Bank (SCB), our country manager, David Robison, thought SCB did not have any future.
I remember smiling and telling him: "Who knows? Maybe we will make so much money that we will be able to buy ANZ Grindlays someday."
However, I could not predict that this would come true in only seven years, when Andy Prebble, then SCB's General Manager for the UK and Europe, invited me to join the global acquisition team for the purchase of ANZ's Grindlays subsidiary. I worked closely with Peter Sullivan, Global Integration Head, John Filmeridis, Head of the Middle East and South Asia, and several others to make the project a success. My experiences with both banks helped me immensely.
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Today, SCB is celebrating 120 years of business in Bangladesh this year. Congratulations to all of my SCB colleagues, and more importantly, the esteemed clients, regulators and stakeholders who made it possible for SCB to become almost a neighbourhood bank in Bangladesh.
I'm happy to see that what was termed as a "banana skin bank" by Institutional Investor magazine back in 1993, has become the bank of choice for many in African, Middle Eastern, and Asian countries, Bangladesh in particular.
Grindlays, and in recent years, SCB, is very much involved in the development process in Bangladesh. We worked very closely with the central bank and government officials to delineate the new country's foreign exchange policy just after its independence.
ANZ Grindlays and SCB played a key role in the establishment of Karnaphuli Fertilizer Company, Chittagong Urea Fertilizer Limited, Jamuna Bridge, Meghna Bridge, Gomti Bridge, Bhairab Bridge, AES Meghnaghat, and the AES Haripur power projects, Grameenphone, AKTEL and even American International School.
They also supported Biman's acquisition of new aircraft, which ultimately contributed to Bangladesh receiving its first-ever sovereign credit rating.
SCB dates back to 1828, when Robert Melville Grindlay established Leslie and Grindlays followed by the establishment of the Chartered Bank in 1853 and the Standard Bank in 1862. Grindlays Bank made its footprint in what is now Bangladesh in 1905, and then SCB in 1948. Grindlays Bank became National and Grindlays Bank in 1959, then The Grindlays Bank in 1975, and then Grindlays Bank PLC in 1982.
In 1969, US-based Citibank acquired a 40% stake in Grindlays Bank, with the other predominant shareholder being Lloyds Bank. In 1984, both of them sold Grindlays Bank to Australia's ANZ Banking Group. However, ANZ only changed its name to ANZ Grindlays Bank in 1989. In 2000, ANZ sold its Grindlays subsidiary to SCB.
Today's Standard Chartered, therefore, carries a lot in terms of legacy.
Among foreign banks, Grindlays was the pioneer in helping the local middle market companies transition into the large local corporations of today. SCB kept the flag flying much higher.
I personally owe a lot to SCB. My MBA programme with Henley Management College was sponsored by SCB. I received their best treasurer award in Africa, the Middle East, and South Asia, and more importantly, the most coveted SCB group Chairman Award for network revenue generation. I worked across the entire spectrum of their wholesale banking—corporate, treasury, financial institutions, recovery and restructuring of stressed loans, and portfolio reviews in several emerging markets in Africa and Asia.
ANZ Grindlays and SCB played a key role in the establishment of Karnaphuli Fertilizer Company, Chittagong Urea Fertilizer Limited, Jamuna Bridge, Meghna Bridge, Gomti Bridge, Bhairab Bridge, AES Meghnaghat, and the AES Haripur power projects, Grameenphone, AKTEL and even American International School. They also supported Biman's acquisition of new aircraft, which ultimately contributed to Bangladesh receiving its first-ever sovereign credit rating.
Seniors like Claude Lobo, Steve McCarthy, Geoff Williams, Alex Thursby, Colin Avery, David Sparkes, Mike Rees, Euleen Goh, David Chew, John Filmeridis, Malcolm Williamson, Robert Green, Shayne Nelson, and many others played a significant role in shaping my career as a corporate banker and risk manager.
My efforts, together with Colin Avery, the Regional Head of Special Assets Management, paid off—leading me to become the youngest CEO in Bangladesh's banking industry to date, and later, the first Bangladeshi CEO of a global bank.
Together with my distinguished colleagues—Ali Reza Iftekhar, SAA Masrur, Fahim Haque, Naser Ezaz Bijoy, Faisal Anwar, Francis Rozario, Ken Gibson, Ashok Luharuwalla, John Chang, David Mccreath, Alamgir Morshed, Masihul Haque Chowdhury, Fahmeeda Sharmin, Kanti Kumar, Majedur Rahman, and many others—we built the finest banking franchise in Bangladesh and delivered the best solutions to our paymasters: our highly esteemed clients. We are all very proud of SCB's success in Bangladesh.
Going forward, SCB has to keep striving for improvements. In our days, there was less competition. Today, many local private banks offer comprehensive solutions and a diverse range of products to clients. While corruption has not decreased, governance remains a major problem in Bangladesh, along with a shortage of capable people.
My SCB friends have to keep investing in developing the best structured solutions for large local and global clients, wealth management products, e-banking, and innovating further on alternate channels in an over-banked but product-wise underserved country—all while fostering a winning bond between their clients and their people, and, of course, without ever losing sight of cybersecurity.
Mamun Rashid is an economic analyst and Chairman at Financial Excellence Ltd.
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions and views of The Business Standard.
