Standard Bank Personal and Private Banking has announced a big increase in its green solution funding today. The bank has led a concerted effort to disburse funds to individuals in South Africa for installing solar solutions or purchasing ‘green-aligned’ homes.
Year to date the bank’s consumer green lending book has grown by over 26% to R2.9 billion.
The bank is confident it will meet its 2023 target of providing R1.2 billion in financing for these initiatives.
Through various initiatives, including the bank’s revolutionary LookSee platform, the bank has installed over 5 600 solar panels on homes, which is providing over 6 00 tons of CO2 offset. Through the platform, the bank has installed over R70 million worth of home solar systems for customers, which is a 350% growth year-on-year.
There has also been a dramatic increase in the financing of solar systems through home loan re-advances. These efforts have resulted in significant savings for South African homeowners, with an estimated annual savings in energy costs of almost R19 million being realized through the Home Efficiency Solutions that have been provided to customers.
“We are incredibly proud to be leading the charge on not only finding new, cost-effective sustainable solutions for our clients energy needs but to be helping in easing the demand on the national grid and promoting energy efficiency” says Andrew van der Hoven, Head of Digital, eCommerce and Housing Platforms at Standard Bank.
Earlier this year, the bank was the first to announce its participation in the government supported bounce back energy loan scheme designed to help small businesses and consumers access financing for energy solutions. The bank’s LookSee Solar Loan, the first of its kind, features personalised interest rates capped at a maximum of Prime plus 2.5% on loans ranging from R3 000 to R300 000. Existing and aspiring clients can also choose a repayment term between 1 and 5 years to suit their monthly budget.
This remarkable work has also seen the platform win the silver at the global Qorus-Accenture Banking Innovation Awards in the Social, Sustainable and Responsible Banking Category, making it the only bank in Africa to receive this prestigious recognition.
“We will continue to drive this work as part of our continuing commitment to play our part in helping to solve the daily challenges our clients face and in so doing help South Africa,” concludes van der Hoven.
