Stable numbers at last, Standard Bank looks ahead to better days

Standard Bank, for decades Africa's most valuable financial institution before mis-steps saw that crown shift to FirstRand, is showing signs of a comeback. At market cap of R240bn, it is now R60bn behind FirstRand's total value, but today's financial result will be heartening to its supporters. Under new joint CEOs Ben Kruger and Sim Tshabalala, Standard has been on a clean-up exercise which has seen huge writeoffs and restructuring. With earnings now stabilised, it is ready to start delivering growing returns once more. Click here for Standard Bank's full financial results. – AH  

JOHANNESBURG, March 5 (Reuters) – Standard Bank, Africa's largest bank by assets, reported an expected 1 percent growth in full-year earnings on Thursday after increases in lending and transactional activity.

Standard Bank said headline earnings per share totalled 1,070 cents for the period ended in December, from 1,065 cents last year. Headline EPS, the benchmark profit measure in South Africa, excludes certain one-time items.

The lender had flagged headline earnings would range between -2 and 2 percent.