INTRODUCTION BASA has addressed both your committees on numerous occasions and we take your oversight role very seriously. We believe we are at a critical juncture in our country where we face challenges that are perhaps as complex as those we faced during the struggle against apartheid and in the negotiating process. BASA and its member banks believe that the conversation our country is going through today is as crucial as the process which led to the ushering in of a democratic order based on one of the finest constitutions in the world. The reality of low GDP growth and the prospect of this continuing for some time, high unemployment, growing levels of poverty and increasing inequality in the context of an uncertain global environment require the same level of robust debate and commitment to the national interest as our founding mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters showed in the early 1990s. Joint Chairpersons, As the banking industry, our starting point is that much progress has been made across sectors and as a country we must celebrate our successes without burying our collective heads in the sand about the remaining challenges. In our submission, we have argued that any suggestion that the banking industry is the least transformed industry or refuses to transform is incorrect, and the data we present bears that out. That does not mean that we are satisfied with the current situation far from it. However, it would be tempting to – address only the little cogs in the wheel of Charters and Codes, when we do not address the actual wheel, the transformation of the economy. You will find, members of the committees, that we are very keen on engaging with that dialogue so that we improve the performance and size of our economy in an inclusive manner. WHO IS THE BANKING SECTOR Let us begin by answering the question: who are the We represent an industry ‘banks’? that: Is made up of 36 banks licensed by the South African Reserve Bank, with 34 being members of BASA
INTRODUCTION BASA has addressed both your committees on numerous occasions and we take your oversight role very seriously. We believe we are at a critical juncture in our country where we face challenges that are perhaps as complex as those we faced during the struggle against apartheid and in the negotiating process. BASA and its member banks believe that the conversation our country is going through today is as crucial as the process which led to the ushering in of a democratic order based on one of the finest constitutions in the world. The reality of low GDP growth and the prospect of this continuing for some time, high unemployment, growing levels of poverty and increasing inequality in the context of an uncertain global environment require the same level of robust debate and commitment to the national interest as our founding mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters showed in the early 1990s. Joint Chairpersons, As the banking industry, our starting point is that much progress has been made across sectors and as a country we must celebrate our successes without burying our collective heads in the sand about the remaining challenges. In our submission, we have argued that any suggestion that the banking industry is the least transformed industry or refuses to transform is incorrect, and the data we present bears that out. That does not mean that we are satisfied with the current situation – far from it. However, it would be tempting to address only the little cogs in the wheel of Charters and Codes, when we do not address the actual wheel, the transformation of the economy. You will find, members of the committees, that we are very keen on engaging with that dialogue so that we improve the performance and size of our economy in an inclusive manner. WHO IS THE BANKING SECTOR Let us begin by answering the question: who are the ‘banks’? We represent an industry that: Is made up of 36 banks licensed by the South African Reserve Bank, with 34 being members of BASA
170314BASA_Oral.docx