While most brands can boast of an unforgettable, or even cleverly written tagline, one bank is consistently going far beyond to live up to its brand promise, Here for good. Standard Chartered Private Bank enjoys a rich history of over a century in the Middle East. More recently, it has been the title sponsor for some of the most prestigious events in the region. In particular, the Dubai Polo Gold Cup where SC Private Bank’s top leaders met and interacted with the crème de la crème of the region’s clients. Such landmark events resonate with its clients and build trust and confidence – key ingredients for business success in the region. For Standard Chartered, its brand promise is an honest commitment, for good.
It comes as no surprise that Standard Chartered Private Bank was adjudged Winner, Best Private Bank Middle East at the Global Private Banking Innovation Awards 2020 (GPB Awards) by The Digital Banker. Considered as the industry’s most authoritative private wealth awards, The Global Private Banking Innovation Awards 2020 (GPB 2020) organised by The Digital Banker identifies and distinguishes the world’s best in class Private Banks, Family Offices and Wealth Managers that demonstrate elite levels of performance & creativity.
Among the highly respected line up of judges at this year’s awards ceremony are industry luminaries from companies such as Forrester, Protiviti and EY. Previous year’s judges include PwC, KPMG, and Fuji Xerox.
“Standard Chartered Private Bank excels on the traditional values of Private Banking, such as good service, discretion and investment advice. In addition, they are strengthening their presence through digital capability and keen focus on sustainability. Offering a unique suite of products and proprietary tools in this space, SC Private Bank has enabled its customers to reach both their investing and social impact goals,” said Nirav Patel, Managing Director at The Digital Banker, the organiser of the Global Private Banking Innovation Awards.
Standard Chartered Private Bank excels on the traditional values of Private Banking, such as good service, discretion and investment advice.
Making an Impact in Sustainability Goals
Standard Chartered Private Bank enjoys a rich history of over a century in the Middle East. During this period and through its deep involvement in the achievement of its clients goals, they have tailored an offering that matches the unique needs of those wealthy clients in the Middle East to help them preserve and grow their wealth.
SC Private Bank launched the Standard Chartered Sustainable Linked Deposits, which was earmarked to support and fund sustainable programmes globally and in the Middle East. Its clients in the Middle East region have also been beneficiaries of its innovative ESG funds, targeting impact investments as well as sustainable bonds and cash deposits. At a Group level, its Sustainability Aspirations have been set as annual and multi-year performance targets aligned to the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Each Aspiration contains one or more performance measures. These are tracked to determine the percentage and proportion of all measures that have been achieved or are on track to deliver at the end of a period. In 2019, the group’s achievement stands 93.1% (rising from 90.9% in 2018).
The Bank has seen a sharp acceleration in assets under management in 2019 and even more so in 2020 as the COVID 19 crisis continues to unfold.
Some of the most notable accomplishments that have been achieved:
- Developed a market leading product proposition in sustainable investing space which includes discretionary portfolios, sustainable structured products, ESG funds, targeted impact investments, alternative investments as well as sustainable bonds and cash deposits.
- Partnered with firms that have the same values, and share a common sustainability focus so that a new ecosystem of like-minded corporate entities and wealthy families can be created. For example, they worked closely with the Al Habtoor Polo Club and Standard Chartered was the title sponsor of the 2020 Dubai Polo Gold Cup, as well as sponsorship of the DUBAI Marathon for the past 12 years.
- Committed a US$1 billion of financing for companies that provide goods and services to help the fight against Covid-19, and those planning the switch into making products that are in high demand to fight the global pandemic.
- Created a global fund of up to $50 million, which will provide relief assistance to those affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, followed subsequently with recovery funding. The Group said that it will immediately donate US$25 million to support emergency relief in the most affected markets.
Inspiring confidence within the community
Such engagements brought Standard Chartered Private Bank closer to its clients and their families. Its success in connecting with clients and wealthy families in the region and gaining more of their trust and confidence, is helping the Bank to rapidly increase its client base. The Bank has also seen a sharp acceleration in assets under management in 2019 and even more so in 2020 as the COVID 19 crisis continues to unfold. The first quarter of this year has seen record revenues generated and a sharp increase in assets under management.
This is reflected in part in the recently published market reports and announcements showing the stellar results of SC Private Bank. This success has also garnered confidence internally to invest and expand its Middle East private banking team. In 2019, the Bank announced hiring of 16 new Senior Bankers and managers in London and Dubai to further deepen its market coverage and enhance its breadth of products.
In the year of significant social disruption, driven by a global pandemic and its consequences, Standard Chartered Private Bank exemplifies the importance of sustainability in helping communities recover. By being at the forefront of innovation in this space, SC Private Bank has consistently proved that its core strength will never waiver for it’s all about empowering people and supporting their growth.
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