Standard Bank recognises that the current disparities in the South African economy in relation to ownership and control will have negative consequences for macroeconomic growth and future welfare distribution, if not addressed constructively and expeditiously.

In light of this backdrop, the group formulated an empowerment strategy which culminated in the sale of an effective 10% of our South African operations to a broad-based grouping. This is the minimum percentage of direct ownership precedent to enabling Standard Bank to score points for indirect ownership.

The black employees under the Black Ownership Initiative comprise two categories:

• 2 500 managerial black employees and qualifying black non-executive directors who are the beneficiaries of trusts that purchased 38,9 million Standard Bank Group ordinary shares; and
  
• non-managerial black employees who were awarded 1,3 million Standard Bank Group ordinary shares at no cost to employees via a bonus allocation of 100 Standard Bank Group ordinary shares each. A similar bonus allocation was made to all group employees worldwide who did not form part of the Black Ownership Initiative or who were not participants in the Standard Bank Group Share Incentive Scheme. This is referred to as the General Staff Scheme.

Shareholding structure immediately following the transaction

Set out above is the resultant ownership structure of Standard Bank Group immediately subsequent to the successful implementation of the scheme and the acquisition of the shares by the empowerment groupings.