Africa’s biggest banking rivalry has a new winner. Standard Bank Group has surged past Capitec Bank and FirstRand to become the continent’s most valuable lender, as investors increasingly bet on African banking giants to deliver growth in an unstable global economy.
At Friday’s close on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, Standard Bank was valued at about $31 billion (R517 billion), ahead of Capitec at roughly $30.6 billion (R511 billion) and FirstRand at about $30.1 billion (R503 billion).
The milestone marks the first time all three South African banks have simultaneously crossed the $30 billion valuation threshold, underscoring the growing weight of African financial institutions in global emerging markets.
The shift also signals how aggressively investors are repositioning around banks with strong African expansion strategies, diversified earnings and deeper exposure to cross-border trade flows as economic momentum weakens across parts of Europe and China.
For years, FirstRand dominated South Africa’s banking hierarchy through powerhouse brands such as FNB and RMB.
