A South African banking-lobby group wants the government to complete a review of a charter created to address inequalities brought about by apartheid to ensure it gives an accurate gauge of lenders’ performance.

The government began the review of the so-called Financial Sector Code in 2018, but has yet to complete work on the checks that track investment to support transformation, or greater participation by the Black majority, according to the Banking Association of South Africa.

“The scorecard doesn’t effectively measure outcomes of banks’ transformation and empowerment efforts,” said Mary Vilakazi, BASA’s chairperson and chief executive officer of the continent’s biggest bank by market value, FirstRand. Both input and outcomes should be measured to ensure the programmes “are making a real difference,” she said.

South African companies are compelled to adopt Black-empowerment plans to comply with government policies to redress financial inequality stemming from the apartheid era.

The pace of transformation is too slow and changes are symbolic rather than substantive, lawmakers in parliament’s financial committee said Tuesday.

Indicators related to black ownership, enterprise, supplier development, and access to finance for historically marginalized communities have consistently fallen short of established benchmarks, they said.

However, BASA maintains that lenders are ahead of the set targets, it said in its 2024 transformation report released Wednesday.

Ownership of banks by Black citizens was at 38% by 2023, while black economic interest — the right to share in company profits — stood at 29%. The goal is 25% in both instances.

Meanwhile, 90% of junior managers in banks are Black, against a target of 80%, and make up 68% of middle management.

Lenders are falling short with senior managers, with 51% being Black, and only making up 36% of top senior managers, against targets of 60%.

“While senior and top senior managers are noticeably below target, the strong pipeline of junior and mid-level black managers is a sure indication that senior managers will soon reflect the demographics of the country,” BASA said, adding that 48% of bank directors are black, against a target of 50%.