In its century of existence Sanlam has built strong relationships with many large banks across Africa, and it has no intention of undoing that work by launching a bank of its own. This is according to Sanlam CEO Ian Kirk, who said this week that launching a bank would be suicidal for the insurer as it would threaten existing relationships it has with big banks and would be difficult to attract talent. Kirk's comments were made against the backdrop of growing competition in the financial services sector. Discovery is gearing up to launch its own bank later this year, while Absa and FNB chase growth in their insurance divisions. Kirk, explaining the dynamics in the industry, said Sanlam had relationships across the continent with Standard Chartered, Barclays Africa and one or two others, and sold products to the client bases of these banks. "If it comes that our high-net-worth clients insist on a Sanlam [banking] offering, which they don't at the moment ... we'll do it with one of our...
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