Black ownership in SA banks declines
But Basa says the decline should not be seen negatively as it’s largely a result of BEE deals that matured between 2015 and 2017
Fewer black people own stakes in SA banks than was the case in 2016 due to a large number of empowerment deals having matured in 2015. The 2019 Transformation In Banking Report showed that black ownership fell to 30.5% in 2017 from 34.8% in 2016, while black economic interest fell from 30.3% to 25.4%. This was, however, still ahead of the Financial Sector Code target of 25%. Khulekani Mathe, senior general manager of financial inclusion at the Banking Association of SA (Basa), said the decline in black ownership and interest was largely due to black economic empowerment (BEE) deals that matured between 2015 and 2017 and saw shareholders disinvesting to put their money in other asset classes. “Debate around ownership of banks can be heated and misguided. Yes, there has been a little bit of a decline but a large part of it is attributable to the many BEE transactions that matured in 2015,” said Mathe. He said the decline should not be seen in a negative light because like other invest...
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