Simpiwe Tshabalala

Simpiwe Tshabalala (born 15 December 1967), also Simphiwe Tshabalala, commonly known as Sim Tshabalala, is a South African lawyer, businessman and corporative executive. He is the Group CEO, of the Standard Bank Group, the largest banking group on the African continent, with total assets of more than ZAR:3.1 trillion (US$164.25 billion), as of June 2024.

Background and education Tshabalala was born on 15 December 1967 in Hlabisa, Umkhanyakude, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. He grew up in Soweto. He graduated with a High School Diploma from Sacred Heart College, Johannesburg.

He studied at Rhodes University, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1988 and a Bachelor of Laws two years later. In 1993, he graduated at the top of his class with a Master of Laws from Notre Dame University in the United States. He returned to South Africa and was admitted to the South African Bar. Later, he obtained a Higher Diploma in Taxation Law from the University of the Witwatersrand. He also attended and completed the Advanced Management Programme from Harvard University in 2006.

In 2008 he was appointed CEO of Standard Bank South Africa, and one of three Deputy CEOs of Standard Bank Group. In 2012, he was given additional responsibility for Corporate and Investment Banking (CIB) in South Africa. In 2013 he was promoted to joint CEO of the Standard Bank Group, serving in that role with co-CEO, Ben Kruger. In 2017 Kruger relinquished his role and Tshabalala became the sole Group CEO.

Note: "Stanbic Africa is the name Standard Bank uses for its operations in some parts of Africa to avoid confusion with UK-based lender Standard Chartered". He supports the South African government's pursuit of a middle-of-the-road free-market economy and a non-aligned geo-political path.