Business

20twenty saved from purgatory

Standard Chartered emerged on 1 August 2003 as the long-awaited white knight for 20twenty, the small but high profile online bank that got caught in the Saambou curatorship. Is this a cat among fat, complacent pigeons?

01 September 2003

The news was widely welcomed by the media and other observers of the banking sector. It was a joyous relief for 20twenty`s fanatically loyal customers, who had spent 18 months in agonising anticipation. Plans for parties in the major centres are underway, complete with t-shirts arranged not by 20twenty`s marketing department, but by its customer fan club.

Standard Chartered has indicated that it has serious intentions of making inroads into the retail banking sector, and expects retail to become “probably” the majority of its South African business in due course. It has established wholesale relationships since it first re-entered the country in 1992, after divesting itself of its remaining interest in Standard Bank in 1987.

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