1st May 2007 09:34
Standard Chartered PLC01 May 2007 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Standard Chartered PLC appoints Deputy Chairman and Non-Executive Director John Peace and Sunil Bharti Mittal have been appointed as independentNon-Executive Directors of Standard Chartered PLC with effect from 1 August2007. John Peace will become Deputy Chairman and also the Senior Independent Directorfrom the date of his appointment. Mr Peace, 58, is Chairman of Experian Group Limited, a FTSE100 company, andBurberry Group plc. His successful career has covered the retail, informationtechnology and financial sectors. Mr Peace was formerly Chief Executive of GUSplc, where his restructuring strategy more than trebled the group's marketcapitalisation in six years. Mr Mittal, 49, is the Founder, Chairman and Group Chief Executive of BhartiEnterprises, the controlling shareholder of Bharti Airtel Ltd, a US$35 billioncompany and one of India's top five companies. Besides controlling and runningBharti Airtel, India's leading private integrated telecom company, BhartiEnterprises is also engaged in several other businesses. Rudy Markham will step down as Senior Independent Director with effect from 1August 2007. Mervyn Davies, Chairman of Standard Chartered, said: "The appointments of John Peace and Sunil Mittal strengthen our governance andadd great depth and diversity to our Board. "John has an outstanding record as a strategic business thinker and forincreasing shareholder value. "Sunil is one of India's most successful and highly respected entrepreneurs andI am very pleased that we have additional Board representation from such animportant market. "I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Rudy Markham for hissupport during his time as the Senior Independent Director. I am delighted thatRudy will be continuing as Chairman of the Audit and Risk Committee, which playssuch a critical role in the governance of the company." Ends For further information please contact: Sean Farrell Head of Media Relations +44 (0)20 7280 7163 Biographies John PeaceJuly 2006 to date: Chairman, Experian Group LimitedJune 2002 to date: Chairman, Burberry Group plc John joined GUS in 1970 and held several senior IT management positions beforeco-founding CCN in 1980, a company formed by GUS to market information servicesto retailers and other lending organisations. As one of Europe's largestinformation services companies, it was combined with a number of other US andEuropean businesses to form Experian in 1996, with John as Chief Executive. Hewas appointed to the GUS main board the following year and became ChiefExecutive of GUS in January 2000. During his six-year tenure, John was responsible for a strategy to maximiseshareholder value, which included the demerger of Burberry, a business with amarket value of £3.0 billion, and separate flotations of Home Retail Group(encompassing Argos and Homebase) and Experian, a group with sales of more thanUS$3.1 billion. The market capitalisation of GUS more than trebled over thisperiod and it was one of the best performing stocks in the FTSE100. Sunil Mittal Founder, Chairman and Group Chief Executive of Bharti Enterprises, headquarteredin New Delhi, India. Bharti Enterprises is one of the top five companies in India, and is thecontrolling shareholder of Bharti Airtel Ltd, which has a market capitalisationof more than US$35 billion and employs more than 30,000 people. Bharti Airtelis India's leading private integrated telecom company. It has been at theforefront of the telecom revolution and has transformed the telecom sector withits world-class services built on leading edge technologies. Other businesses in the group are: manufacturing and marketing of communicationand media devices; a life insurance joint venture with AXA; and FieldFreshFoods, engaged in the agri sector. Sunil founded Bharti in 1976 at the age of 18 after graduating from PunjabUniversity. He holds one of the highest civilian awards in India - PadmaBhushan, and a Doctor of Science (Honoris Causa) degree from the G B PantUniversity. Standard Chartered - leading the way in Asia, Africa and the Middle East Standard Chartered PLC is listed on both the London Stock Exchange and the HongKong Stock Exchange and is consistently ranked in the top 25 among FTSE-100companies by market capitalisation. Standard Chartered has a history of over 150 years in banking and operates inmany of the world's fastest-growing markets with an extensive global network ofover 1,400 branches (including subsidiaries, associates and joint ventures) inover 50 countries in the Asia Pacific Region, South Asia, the Middle East,Africa, the United Kingdom and the Americas. As one of the world's most international banks, Standard Chartered employsalmost 60,000 people, representing over 100 nationalities, worldwide. Thisdiversity lies at the heart of the Bank's values and supports the Bank's growthas the world increasingly becomes one market. With strong organic growth supported by strategic alliances and acquisitions anddriven by its strengths in the balance and diversity of its business, products,geography and people, Standard Chartered is well positioned in the emergingtrade corridors of Asia, Africa and the Middle East. Standard Chartered derives over 90 per cent of profits from Asia, Africa and theMiddle East. Serving both Consumer and Wholesale Banking customers worldwide,the Bank combines deep local knowledge with global capability to offer a widerange of innovative products and services as well as award-winning solutions. Trusted across its network for its standard of governance and corporateresponsibility, Standard Chartered takes a long term view of the consequences ofits actions to ensure that the Bank builds a sustainable business through socialinclusion, environmental protection and good governance. Standard Chartered is also committed to all its stakeholders by living itsvalues in its approach towards managing its people, exceeding expectations ofits customers, making a difference in communities and working with regulators. 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