Standard Chartered
Margaret Harwood-Jones
28 Octobver 2025
Margaret Harwood-Jones, managing director, global head of Financing and Íø±¬³Ô¹Ï Services at Standard Chartered, speaks to Zarah Choudhary about accelerating growth in Europe, the role of AI in securities services, and how frontier markets are driving the next wave of innovation
Image: Margaret Harwood-Jones
You were recently appointed to the supervisory board at Standard Chartered. What strategic priorities do you see for the bank over the next three years, especially given Europe’s regulatory and market backdrop, and with T+1 in focus?
The business that Standard Chartered has across Europe sits largely within our corporate and investment banking division. I am part of the CIB management team, so taking on supervisory board responsibilities is a natural extension of that role. When you think about Standard Chartered’s strategy, we often describe ourselves as a ‘super connector’ — helping clients access services and opportunities across Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. That connectivity is in the bank’s DNA.
We see significant business opportunities in supporting clients across Europe as they pursue products and services in those regions. We now have an ambitious growth plan in place, having established our European hub in Germany post-Brexit, and we are ready to accelerate that growth. Standard Chartered’s unique positioning in frontier and emerging markets allows us to grow in ways that differentiate us from many other European banks.
Are there any specific strategies or products that differentiate Standard Chartered?
Within CIB, we have four global product businesses: Financial Markets; Global Banking; Transaction Banking — which includes cash and trade; and Íø±¬³Ô¹Ï Services. Each has its own strategic focus, but together they represent the full weight and capability of CIB.
This aligns with the bank’s overall direction to ensure we are banking both broadly and deeply with clients across the organisation.
You have led the rollout of an AI testing solution to standardise and automate instruction processing. Could you share more about how this was developed and the results you are seeing?
AI is an area where the bank is accelerating adoption across multiple businesses, not just within Íø±¬³Ô¹Ï Services. Given our presence in emerging and frontier markets, we are conscious of the unique nuances in each — and AI can help us address those efficiently.
Our approach focuses on converting unstructured client data into structured, usable formats through natural language processing. We started with settlements — core to our role as a custodian — and have now deployed the capability across 14 markets.
The results have been strong: processing turnaround times have improved by 99 per cent, while manual intervention has fallen by about 70 per cent. This has led to significant gains in productivity, accuracy, and client experience.
Where do you see the greatest potential for technology to transform securities services, particularly in markets with developing infrastructure?
The potential is substantial. The move toward shorter settlement cycles is a key catalyst for greater automation and efficiency across our operations.
We also see transformation opportunities through digital assets. Instantaneous settlement is becoming increasingly relevant, so it is essential that our infrastructure can support both digitally issued securities and the evolution of existing asset classes.
How do you prioritise which markets to enter or deepen your presence in, given regulatory, liquidity and infrastructure risks?
Our approach is very client-driven. We maintain close, ongoing relationships to anticipate client needs — not just today, but in the future. That insight helps determine where we invest next, whether by launching in new geographies or expanding our product capabilities within existing ones.
It is also important that any new proposition aligns with Standard Chartered’s broader CIB suite. We would not launch a securities services business in a market where the bank does not already have a meaningful presence. Our goal is always to work with clients in a broad and deeply integrated way.
Could you share an example of where Standard Chartered has recently tailored its offering to meet regional client needs?
Client collaboration is central to all our product rollouts, particularly in emerging sectors. In the digital asset space, for example, we launched our crypto custody capability at the end of last year in close partnership with Brevan Howard, who became our first live client. That collaboration helped ensure our solution was fit for purpose from day one.
In Asia, we have worked with China Asset Management to launch the region’s first tokenised money market fund for retail clients. These kinds of partnerships — co-creating and pioneering with clients — are how we continue to bring new solutions to market.
What lessons has the firm applied from recent market entries or licensing efforts, such as in Jordan or China?
No two markets are ever the same, so every launch comes with its own learning curve. We make a point of capturing those lessons and applying them to future efforts. A key success factor is establishing strong local relationships — with regulators, partners, and talent on the ground. Having in-country expertise ensures that we operate effectively, compliantly and in line with local market realities. That principle applies not just to securities services, but across the bank’s broader CIB business.
As the business evolves, how do you ensure teams remain agile, capable and motivated — especially in regions where resources are limited?
People are at the heart of what we do. Íø±¬³Ô¹Ï Services is an operational business built on people, process, and technology — but people are the differentiator. We invest heavily in developing technical competence across all teams globally, while tailoring training locally for the ‘last-mile’ understanding that’s critical in asset servicing.
More recently, we have focused on education in emerging areas such as digital assets and AI. That includes leadership participation — I have personally completed certifications in both — because learning and curiosity have to start at the top. Continuous upskilling keeps our teams motivated, future-ready and aligned with the bank’s innovation agenda.
Standard Chartered’s strongest footprint is across Asia. Which markets in the region do you see as the biggest growth opportunities for financing and securities services in the next three to five years?
Asia remains central to our growth strategy and to the bank’s heritage. The region offers significant long-term opportunities, both for expanding existing products and developing new ones.
Greater China continues to be a key area of growth, particularly around digital assets. Hong Kong, in particular, serves as a hub for innovation and potentially as an incubation ground for developments that could extend to Mainland China.
Across the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) — including Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam — we are seeing strong regulatory and market reforms aimed at aligning with international standards and attracting greater investment inflows. Each market is at a different stage, but the collective momentum across Asia is very encouraging.
Beyond Asia, which other regions present strong growth potential for Standard Chartered?
The Middle East stands out as another major growth region. We have seen strong collaboration with regulators there, particularly in the UAE, where there is a clear commitment to leading in digital asset innovation. We are also seeing growing opportunities in the regional funds market, driven by increasing interest in retail and retirement savings products. With our on-the-ground presence and full service offering, we are well positioned to support clients developing new fund structures and investment solutions.
In Saudi Arabia, we are expanding our range of services to meet rising investment flows both into and within the Kingdom.
More broadly, our footprint across Africa, Asia, and the Middle East gives us a strong platform to serve clients in emerging and frontier markets — where growth potential remains immense.
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