Project Report On Standard Chartered Bank

Background of the Organisation

Write the Project Report on Standard Chartered Bank.

Situational Analysis refers to the analysis of both the macro and micro environmental factors affecting the working of businesses. SWOT analysis and the analysis of the competitors are a part of situational analysis of the company (Richard, Wilson and Gilligan, 2012). It consists of other methods also which analyses the external and internal environment factors of the company. It is important to do the analysis as this will help in the initial stages of the company as well as for the evaluation at regular intervals. The current report will discuss about the background of Standard Chartered Bank, Singapore its competitors and SWOT analysis of the organisation.    

The organisation for the current report is Standard Chartered Bank, Singapore but it was found in London, UK. It provides its services worldwide also it has its major revenues are generated from Africa, Middle East and Asia (Standard Chartered, 2017a). It is a public limited company in Banking and Financial Services deals in products and services like consumer banking, credit cards, mortgage loans, wealth management, corporate, private and investment banking. Currently, the company is working in 17 branches with 7,000 employees in Singapore and with 1200 branches with 87,000 employees worldwide. The positioning of the company in the minds of the consumers is quite good as they are exposed to many of their wholesale banking products and services (Standard Chartered, 2010b). The revenues of the company were 11,079,000, 15,929,000, 17,060,000 and 17,301,000 for the financial years 2015, 2014, 2013 and 2012 respectively. The financial situation of the company is depicted on the basis of the total revenues which are decreasing over the last three years (Yahoo Finance, 2017). The distribution network of the company is very extensive and wide as they have their branches and for increasing their reach for which they have merged with associate banks as this will enhance the distribution and act as a helping hand to the core branches.

Banking industry is full of players these days moreover; the competition is becoming intense day by day. Singapore is a huge emerging market for banking and financial services with local and international players. The major direct competitors are various international and domestic banks which offer more or less the same products and services to its customers. They are DBS, OCBC, BNP Paribas, Citibank and HSBC etc. Indirect competitors are the private lenders, small payment banks, other corporate societies which offer loans and advances to people. Payment banks are those which accept and make payments. The company stands in a sustainable position in comparison to its competitors because of its exclusive offers for their cardholders cash back promotion for Uber and others (Standard Chartered, 2017d).  

Competitor Analysis

Explanation of table

The above table shows the internal analysis and external analysis of Standard Chartered Bank i.e. the strengths and weaknesses, opportunities and threats respectively. The strength of the company is its strong reputation in the banking industry and one of the major foreign banks in Singapore. It is also dealing in diversified portfolio as it is offering various products and services to its customers. The company also enjoys the first mover advantage as it is one of oldest banks. The company is a trusted brand as the company invests heavily in the corporate social responsible activities like children eye care in China, promoting microfinance in Indonesia, using LED lights, and financial education to youth in Zambia, supporting and encouraging girls in Bangladesh etc. Therefore; all these activities have made the brand more popular and renowned (Standard Chartered, 2015c).

The weakness of the company is that the decline in the currency against the US dollars which leads to the impact on the financial growth of the country and company. It has a long term impact which affects the inflation and the interest rates. The company’s another major weakness is that the company is having less share in markets like India and China as they can be huge business hubs for the company. They are also not able to make up with the constant technological advancements and also there is less of innovation because the company follows the same kind of hierarchical organisational structure.  

The opportunities for the company are that they should explore the emerging economies which can be good sources of revenues to the company. In addition to this, the company should also go for mergers and acquisitions with the small enterprises or banks which will help the company to expand by utilising the resources of the smaller business. In addition to this, the company can explore the underserved markets of different countries rural and underdeveloped areas in order to expand its customer base. There are also options for the company to diversify in different areas which are unrelated to the banking industry it can be investing into social activities which will generate revenues for the company.

The threat to the company is the cut-throat competition that is prevailing in the banking industry. The increase in the cyber-crime activities can lead to a big losses to the company in terms of money and as well as the customer databases. Private local banks are improving and customising their services to attract customers which can hinder the growth of the foreign banks. The banking industry is also a free entry and exit and is prone to vulnerable competition. Another threat is the varied and rigid policies of governments of different countries.    

Conclusion

On the basis of the above report it can be concluded that the Standard Chartered Bank is upholding a good position in Singapore in comparison to other foreign players. It is also said that because of a strong historical brand image the company still manages to sustain its identity. Apart from this, the company should also focus on its expansion in other growing markets which as this will improve its global presence. Other than this the company should focus on the stringent policies made by the governments of different countries. This will enable them to exploit the opportunities of the markets of that particular country.

References

Richard M.S. Wilson and Gilligan, C., 2012. (ed., 3^rd). Strategic Marketing Management. Routledge.

Standard Chartered., 2010b. Position statements. Viewed 14 February 2017. From https://www.sc.com/sustainability-review09/en/sustainable_finance/position_statements.html.

Standard Chartered., 2015c. Annual Report 2015. Viewed 17 February 2017. From https://www.sc.com/annual-report/2015/.

Standard Chartered., 2017a. Overview. Viewed 14 February 2017. From https://www.sc.com/sg/about-us/.

Standard Chartered., 2017d. viewed 17 February 2017 from https://www.sc.com/sg/campaign/uber/.

Yahoo Finance., 2017. Standard Chartered PLC (STAN.L). viewed 14 February 2017. From https://in.finance.yahoo.com/q/is?s=STAN.L&annual.