In its drive to be Africa’s gateway to the world, Nigeria’s largest bank by assets base, Access Bank Plc, has completed the acquisition of a majority stake of about 78.15% in African Banking Corporation of Botswana Limited (‘BancABC Botswana’).
The recent move, the bank said, is in line with its commitment to expanding its presence in the African continent.
The development was announced through a notice signed by its Secretary, Sunday Ekwochi, and filed with the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX).
The said statement said BancABC Botswana is the fifth-largest bank in Botswana and is a well-capitalised franchise poised for growth in its local market.
According to it, the new acquisition will form part of the Bank’s nexus for trade and payments in Southern Africa and the broader COMESA trade region. The deal will also afford Access Bank the opportunity to leverage on BancABC’s strong retail banking space to provide products that would benefit its local markers and enable it compete strongly across core business segments.
Commenting on the transaction, the GMD/CEO of Access Bank Plc, Dr Herbert Wigwe said: “We are pleased with the successful conclusion of this transaction which will provide significant synergies by combining BancABC Botswana’s strong retail banking operation with Access Bank’s wholesale banking capabilities. It will also strengthen the quality of earnings through revenue diversification and growth in the corporate and SME banking segments for BancABC Botswana. The combination is another step towards our broader vision of becoming the World’s most respected African bank.”
Access Bank in recent times had made significant entry into key markets in South Africa, Zambia, Mozambique, among others, and now has presence in about 10 African countries.
Source: hallmarknews