International recognition for South African Banking Ombudsman

November, 2008

The Ombudsman for Banking Services (OBS), Clive Pillay, has been honoured by the African banking fraternity, being named the 'Banking Adjudicator of the Year' in the 2008 African Banker Awards for his work in facilitating effective dispute resolution for the South African banking public and his contribution to the promotion of banking industry professionalism.

The award, presented in Washington DC in October 2008, was accepted on Pillay's behalf by the South African ambassador to Washington Welile Nhlapo and subsequently presented personally to Pillay on 20 November in Johannesburg by Omar Ben Yedder, associate group publisher of the event organiser, African Business magazine.

The Washington event was attended by more than 350 guests, including African finance ministers, governors of central banks, financial market regulators, leading bankers and global media personalities.

Says Pillay: "Being recognised by a body of one's peers on the international stage is a tremendous honour, and it reflects on the excellent work achieved by the OBS board and staff members in the past year."

The OBS's mandate, Pillay explains, is to provide South African banks and their customers with an efficient dispute resolution service that is fair and impartial.

During 2007, it dealt with almost 40 000 cases, about 40% more than in the previous year. More than 27 000 of these were resolved at the help desk stage, eliminating the need for escalation to investigation, adjudication and mediation steps. Of the total cases resolved, more than 58% were found in favour of the complainants, with the balance going the way of the banks. Maladministration was the main cause for complaints in the year, accounting for 43% of the total compared to 26% in the previous year. Following the trend of recent years, maladministration, unfair treatment and fraud again ranked as the top three causes of complaint.

"The relatively high rate of complaints is as a result of greater awareness of the existence of the OBS among bank customers and the well publicised launch of a central call centre for financial services issues," says Pillay. "Our most significant achievement is the number of cases referred back to the bank and solved amicably without the need for further action. This reflects on the industry's professionalism and commitment to customer service."

Pillay, a lawyer by training, was appointed banking ombudsman in May 2007.