ADIEU STANDARD CHARTERED: 130 YEARS OF LEGACY, LOYALTY, AND LASTING IMPACT IN THE GAMBIA
In the quiet chambers of memory, certain institutions are not just remembered, they are revered. After 130 years of remarkable service to The Gambia, Standard Chartered Bank bows out today Friday 13th June 2025. Not with silence, but with a legacy that will echo across time, touching every family, every corner of our land, and every heartbeat that once beat in rhythm with the blue and green Standard Chartered name.
This is not just the story of a bank, it is the story of a nation.
Founded in 1894 as the Bank of West Africa, it marked the beginning of formal banking in The Gambia, later evolving into Standard Bank, and eventually taking its iconic identity in 1978 as Standard Chartered Bank Gambia Limited. For generations, it was more than a financial institution, it was an anchor of trust, professionalism, and excellence. At one point served as the country’s Central Bank.
Parents, including mine, relied on its steadfastness to remit tuition for their children to schools and universities in the UK, USA, and beyond. Farmers, traders, teachers, judges, legal practitioners, doctors, entrepreneurs, all walked into its branches with hopes, dreams, and dignity, and walked out with solutions, empowerment, and respect. It was where the economy breathed, where futures were financed, and where legacies were banked.
The departure of Standard Chartered from The Gambia marks the end of an era. It is as though a venerable tree, under whose shade generations have rested, is being gently uprooted. In that shade stood great men and women, customers, staff, board members, and CEOs (from Messrs David Kwana, O.J Mukumba, Humphrey Mukwereza of blessed memory, Albert R. Saltson, and Olukorede Adenowo aka KO) who shaped the bank and, in turn, shaped our nation.
Institutions thrive because of the people who lead them. Let me take a moment to honour some of those giants.
The late Dr. James N’Dow, one of the most upright, ethical, and visionary Chairmen this country has known, led with unimpeachable integrity. Although I did not serve under him as Company Secretary, I am deeply privy to the work he did for the bank. His leadership style was anchored in humility, grace, and an impressive understanding of both banking and good governance. He had the rare ability to harmonise principles with performance, and always placed integrity at the heart of every boardroom decision. His memory remains etched in every governance milestone, every policy refined under his oversight, and every ethical stand taken in his time.
I cannot help but pay heartfelt tribute to the best CEO I have ever worked with, Mr. Albert Richard Saltson, a seasoned banker, a leader with a rare blend of humility and brilliance, and a man of proven character. He brought out the best in all of us. Albert did not only believe in processes, but he also believed in people. I remain forever grateful for the opportunity to serve under his leadership, to advise him as a trusted legal advisor, and to learn from his wisdom.
Let us also honour the late Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara, The Gambia’s founding father and the bank’s biggest local shareholder. He held Standard Chartered not just as an investment, but as a beacon of reliability and national pride. His passion for the bank was both public and personal, and his quiet but resolute support helped keep the institution rooted in the Gambian economy for decades.
The bank has not only produced profits; it has produced people. Standard Chartered Bank has been the cradle of some of the brightest and most competent bankers in the subregion. It has instilled in them values of discipline, commitment, transparency, and service. Some of these men and women have gone on to lead other institutions, carry the bank’s legacy to new shores, and continue its story in new uniforms, but with the same spirit.
To all the loyal staff, past and present, especially those who gave this institution 30, 40, even 45 years of uninterrupted service (Suntu Cham comes to mind), you are the unsung heroes of this story. You carried the bank’s reputation on your shoulders. You guarded its name with pride. You gave it your prime years. Today, as the doors close, may you stand proud knowing that your dedication has not gone unnoticed.
To our dear customers, thank you. Your loyalty was never blind. It was earned, year after year, by the service you received and the respect you were shown. Your stories, your savings, your struggles, and successes, all formed the heartbeat of Standard Chartered in The Gambia.
To our loyal shareholders, your trust and confidence in the bank over generations has been a quiet but powerful pillar. You believed in its future, stood by it in times of transition, and remained committed to its values. Your dedication sustained the bank, and today, you deserve to be celebrated just as much as the institution itself.
No tribute would be complete without acknowledging the bank’s long-serving external counsel, Ida D. Drameh & Associates, whose partnership spanned over two decades. Their unflinching and unparallel legal support, sound advice, and deep understanding of the bank’s operations played a critical role in safeguarding the institution’s reputation, mitigating risk, and ensuring compliance throughout some of its most defining moments. Their contribution was not just legal, it was institutional.
As I bid farewell to this institution where I served faithfully for 15 years as its Chief Legal Counsel and Company Secretary, I do so with immense gratitude, respect, and emotion. I leave with no regrets, only treasured memories. I saw excellence. I saw challenges. I saw transformation. And above all, I saw integrity.
Though I have since transitioned to Standard Chartered UAE in 2024, I remained closely connected to The Gambia franchise throughout the divestment journey. Even while attending to my UAE responsibilities, I continued to support the transition process in The Gambia, ensuring dignity, clarity, and care in the bank’s exit. It was not just professional duty, it was personal loyalty.
Let me borrow the words of the Roman philosopher Cicero:
“The life of the dead is placed in the memory of the living.”
So too, the life of a great institution is carried forward by those it once served. Standard Chartered may be leaving our soil, but it will never leave our souls.
In the words of Kahlil Gibran:
“You give but little when you give of your possessions.
It is when you give of yourself that you truly give.”
Standard Chartered gave itself to The Gambia, and in return, The Gambia gave its love.
As I pen this final tribute, the memories flood back. Boardrooms. Branches. Community projects. Strategy sessions. Customer visits. Regulatory reforms. All now part of a cherished past.
To the next chapter, to Access Bank Gambia, let it be known that you are stepping into shoes carved by a century of dedicated service, unmatched professionalism, and unblemished reputation. Uphold that standard.
Adieu Standard Chartered.
You were not just a bank.
You were our story.
You were our Standard.
And now, you are our memory.
