Standard Chartered Bank has selected Nigerian banker Dalu Ajene as the head of its Africa operations, succeeding Kariuki Ngari, who previously held the continental position alongside his role as chief executive of the bank’s Kenyan branch. Mr Ajene is transitioning from his position as chief executive of StanChart Nigeria, which he took on in April 2024, to a more extensive multinational leadership role. The change in leadership marks Mr Ngari stepping down from the Africa CEO position less than two years after being given additional responsibilities as managing director and chief executive for Kenya and Africa in April 2024. StanChart mentioned that Mr Ajene will also take on the role of head of coverage for Africa, overseeing the bank’s client relationships and business development across the region. “Dalu holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics from Dartmouth College and an MBA from Harvard Business School and is known as a leader committed to fostering a high-performance culture centered around people empowerment to provide exceptional service to clients and strong financial results for stakeholders,” stated the bank in a release. Before joining StanChart, Mr Ajene was the chief executive of Rand Merchant Bank Nigeria, adding to a career spanning over 25 years in the financial services industry. After leaving the continental role, Mr Ngari now focuses solely on leading the local business, having been the CEO of StanChart Bank Kenya since 2019 and managing the lender’s local operations for more than five years. The Kenyan unit reported a 38.2 percent decrease in net profit for the nine months ending September 2025, with earnings dropping to Sh9.7 billion from Sh15.8 billion during the same period the previous year. This decline was mainly due to a one-time charge of Sh2.7 billion under staff expenses to settle a pension claim awarded by the Supreme Court to former employees after a 16-year legal battle. The bank had allocated a cumulative Sh2 billion fund during the litigation period to address incorrect pension calculations affecting the appellants. In addition to the pension-related cost, the bank’s performance was affected by lower interest income from loans, as well as declining foreign exchange earnings. Interest income from customer loans decreased by 21.3 percent to Sh13.6 billion as the bank’s loan portfolio contracted and lending rates dropped, limiting earnings from private-sector credit. The loan portfolio stood at Sh146.3 billion as of September 2025, down from Sh151.2 billion a year earlier, indicating reduced demand for borrowing among businesses and households. Income from lending to other banks fell by Sh2.25 billion, or 44.5 percent, to Sh2.8 billion due to higher liquidity levels in the banking sector that reduced interbank borrowing. Foreign exchange trading income also fell by 58.9 percent to Sh2.7 billion from Sh6.6 billion as the stability of the shilling reduced opportunities for banks to earn trading revenue. By September, StanChart issued a profit warning, indicating that its net profit for the full year ending December 2025 would fall by at least 25 percent compared to 2024, highlighting the extent of the pressure on earnings.→ kmwangi@ke.nationmedia.comFollow our WhatsApp channel for the latest business and markets updates. Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (Syndigate.info).
