Access Bank has finalized its acquisition of a controlling stake in African Banking Corporation of Tanzania (ABCT), nearly eleven months after the transaction was initially announced, Access Holdings reported on Monday.
Until the deal’s consummation, ABCT was a subsidiary of London-listed Atlas Mara Limited, an Africa-focused special-purpose acquisition company with stakes in different banks across the continent.
Atlas Mara, formerly the biggest shareholder of Union Bank, sold its interest in the lender to Titan Trust Bank two years ago.
Access Bank said the Tanzanian acquisition is a boost to its push to become “the World’s Most Respected African Bank” and is also central to its near-term strategy of aiming for local, regional and international revenue opportunities across trade, payments and specialized commerce for business and retail customers in East Africa.
ABCT, a full-service commercial bank, has been operating in Tanzania for more than twenty years.
Access Bank is looking to consummate the deals for acquiring Standard Chartered Bank’s majority holdings in the latter’s subsidiaries in Angola, The Gambia, Sierra Leone and its consumer and private banking business in Tanzania later this year.
Recall that in January, Access Bank completed the buyout of African Banking Corporation Zambia Limited; an expansion move it said will create one of the five biggest lenders by total assets with the ambition to be among the top three by 2027.
Other deals in the pipeline include the purchase of the controlling stake in Ugandan-based Finance Trust Bank Limited and the entire issued share capital of National Bank of Kenya Limited.
“This strategic move represents a notable step towards setting a railroad in Tanzania for intra-African trade within the East African region, Africa and the rest of the world,” said Access Bank Managing Director Roosevelt Ogbonna.
“It underscores our commitment to creating a robust East African banking network, driving positive change and innovation,” he added.
John Imani, the managing director of ABCT, remarked that completing the transaction provides fresh opportunities for the bank’s customers, stakeholders and employees while noting Access Bank’s confidence in both ABCT and the Tanzanian market.
“The new entity is poised to enhance our service offerings, leveraging Access Bank’s extensive resources and expertise to deliver even greater value to our clients,” he said.
Access Bank plans to combine ABCT with the consumer and private banking business of Standard Chartered Bank Tanzania when acquired to create an enlarged entity within the Tanzanian market.
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