Banking Industry.
South Africa has 31 banking institutions – 10 locally controlled, six foreign-controlled, 13 registered branches and two mutual banks – were reporting data to the Bank Supervision Department of the Reserve Bank. There were also 43 authorised representative offices of international banks in South Africa.
The banking industry is characterised by a high degree of concentration, with four banks, namely Absa Bank Ltd, The Standard Bank of South Africa Ltd, FirstRand Bank Ltd and Nedbank Ltd, dominating the sector. The domestic banking sector’s operating environment remained challenging during 2011, however signs of improvement were evidenced compared to 2010.
