A fitting honour for loyal customer

[Standard Bank Team]

Mr Dudley Coetzee could not hide his joy when Standard Bank Group surprised him with a special lunch to honour him for his 90 years as a loyal customer.

When you meet Mr Coetzee it is difficult to believe that he is 90 years old – an account was opened in his name the year he was born. Listening to him for a while, what stands out is his precise recollection of events from his past.

A man with an impeccable memory and a good sense of humour, Mr Coetzee kept all who attended the lunch listening with disbelief as he recounted exact details of when his father opened his first savings account to his youthful days in the military.

It was 1921 when his father, Henry Michael Coetzee, a devout Standard Bank employee, opened his son’s first savings account, the same year he was born.

“In 1921 my father opened my first savings account with a five shilling deposit at a Standard Bank branch in George, South Africa. He would deposit one shillings each and every month, but wouldn’t let me touch it,” said Mr Coetzee.

Mr Coetzee remembers with crystal clarity when he first opened his first cheque account in 1940, saving for his first car which he bought in 1952 for 400 pounds cash. “It felt good to walk around with a cheque book, it was like I’m man of the world,” he jokes.

When he took out his first home loan with Standard Bank, he made sure he paid it off in five years. “My father always told me a man who has paid off his house is a rich man,” he said.

He attributes his stay with Standard Bank to the treatment and service that he has received from staff over the years. “There’s nothing more fulfilling than walking into the bank and the staff remember who you are and treat you with respect,” he said.

Lincoln Mali, Director Customer Channels, couldn’t agree more. He said service is about passion for customers and how we relate to their needs. “To have Mr Coetzee as a customer for all these years is an honour. It helps us to rekindle our passion for customers and go back to who we are,” he said.

Like his father who has been with the bank since 1910 until he retired in 1949, loyalty is everything to Dudley.