Stanbic Bank open to South Sudan market

Joshua Oigara, the chief executive of Stanbic Bank Kenya and South Sudan, said the lender could consider working as a subsidiary in the near future, but it is “comfortable as it is now.”

In an interview with Business Daily in Nairobi, Mr Oigara said the bank is licensed to operate in South Sudan as a branch and is not in a hurry to become a subsidiary, although such an option is on the table.

“We have been in that market since 2004. Our license is still intact. The conversation we have had is if we should continue operating as a branch or start a subsidiary,” he said, as quoted by Business Daily.

“We are licensed as a branch today, and that has not changed. We will continue looking at how to grow and scale up in that market in the next two to three years. In the short term, we are okay to operate as we are.”

Stanbic Bank is one of the Kenyan banks operating in Juba. Mr Oigara was appointed to the position in November last year, where he replaced Charles Mudiwa, who retired after spending 20 years at the bank. He was previously at the KCB Bank.