South Africa's Standard Bank awarded banking license in Ivory Coast

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South Africa's Standard Bank has been awarded a banking license in Ivory Coast, one of Africa's fastest growing economies, extending its reach to 20 countries on the continent, the lender said on Monday. "Standard Bank – trading as Stanbic Bank – has been formally awarded a banking license in Côte d’Ivoire," it said in a statement, adding that it was gearing up to commence banking operations but did not give a timeframe. (Reporting by TJ Strydom; Editing by James Macharia)