Standard Bank published its integrated financial report for 2022 in March 2023, revealing how much its top executives got paid.
For the year ended December 2022, Standard Bank Group delivered sustainable earnings growth and improved returns despite the challenging conditions in the country.
Total income was up 18% to R156.92 billion, from R132.72 billion in 2021, while headline earnings per share were up 33% to 2,087.1 cents (2021: 1,573).
Return on equity (ROE) improved to 16.4% (FY21: 13.5%). Net asset value grew by 10%, and the group ended the current period with a common equity tier 1 ratio of 13.5% (31 December 2021: 13.8%).
The board approved a final dividend of 691 cents per share which equates to a final dividend payout ratio of 60%, it said.
Staff costs increased by 12% due to annual salary increases, increased skilled staff, and higher incentive accruals aligned to performance. Information technology costs increased by 13%, largely due to higher spend on cloud migration and software licences.
Commenting on the year ahead, the bank said that the challenges are not expected to abate, but prospects are mixed.
Inflation is expected to moderate to 5.9% in the year ahead – but the economy is expected to show weak performance, and South Africa will also have to contend with being greylisted by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).
Echoing wider market sentiments, Standard Bank said that load shedding and the power crisis are fundamental to South Africa’s outlook – and if any positive movement is to be seen, it will have to come from a resolution to the ongoing energy constraints.
Executive pay
According to Standard Bank’s single figure report, CEO Sim Tshabalala’s pay amounted to R55.69 million – a 12.7% increase from the R49.38 million he received in pre-Covid 2019.
This comprises his fixed salary of R10.5 million and a cash incentive of R8.65 million. The group CEO also got a deferred award of R10.65 million as well as a performance award vested of R25.8 million.
Tshabalala’s salary equates to him earning around R152,575 a day.
The group’s CFO, Arno Daehnke, took home R43.8 million for the year – a notable 25% increase from the R35 million he received in 2019.
All but one of Standard Bank’s top seven executives received a total package of over R30 million for the year, with the Group executive, David Munro, taking the ‘smallest’ amount among the executives at R27.47 million.
Combined, the six executives received a total of R293 million in salaries – averaging R41.8 million per exec.
Based on Standard Bank’s reported numbers, the group spent R26.58 billion on staff costs in 2022 for its 28,870 employees (including salaries and benefits). This translates to around R920,000 per employee.
The average executive earned 45 times more than the average employee, with the CEO earning 60 times more.
Stats SA’s latest Quarterly Employment Survey showed that the average salary of the average formally-employed non-agricultural worker in the country is now R26,032, or R312,384 a year.
The table below outlines what Standard Bank’s top executives earned and how that translates per day.
| Employee | Total Remuneration | Average per day |
| S Tshabalala | R55.69 million | R152 575 |
| A Fihla | R50.24 million | R137 643 |
| A Daehnke | R43.83 million | R120 082 |
| M Nienaber | R43.64 million | R119 561 |
| F Montjane | R38.14 million | R104 493 |
| B Blackie | R34.04 million | R93 260 |
| D Munro | R27.47 million | R75 260 |
| Standard Bank average | R920 000 | R2 520 |
| South Africa average | R312 384 | R856 |
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