Standard Chartered Sells Subsidiaries In Four African Countries To Access Bank

Access Holdings’ banking division, Access Bank, has agreed to acquire the subsidiaries of Standard Chartered in four African countries, amid its expansion drive. 

Access Bank offered to purchase Standard Chartered’s subsidiaries in Angola, Cameroon, Gambia and Sierra Leone, after the latter announced its intention to exit the four markets. 

According to a statement released on Friday to the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX), Access Holdings said it is also awaiting the approval of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to complete the acquisition of a majority equity stake in African Banking Corporation (Tanzania) Limited.

It was revealed that Tanzania’s financial regulator has already approved the deal, which is expected to be completed, alongside that of Standard Chartered, in 12 months. 

The Managing Director of Access Bank, Roosevelt Ogbonna, said: “For Access Bank, these Transactions represent a key step in our journey to build a strong global franchise focused on serving as a gateway for payments, investment, and trade within Africa and between Africa and the rest of the world as we continue to deliver on our vision to be the World’s Most Respected African Bank.  

“Our 5-year growth plan will see us build a world-class payments gateway leveraging the power of technology and supported by a dynamic ecosystem of local and international partnerships, enabling us to serve global payments and remittances efficiently. With our recent European expansion and our deepened presence in key trading corridors across Africa, we will bridge the gap between cross-border and domestic transfers across all business segments. More importantly, we are committed to impacting our host communities positively.” 

In his address, the Group Chief Executive Officer of Access Holdings, Herbert Wigwe, said the Transactions mark a significant leap forward for Access Bank and “reinforces our strategy of strengthening our footprint across Sub-Saharan Africa to harness synergistic opportunities for sustainable income diversification and profitability. 

“We remain committed to our five-year strategy, which envisions our banking subsidiary emerging as a true leader in banking services across the African continent,” He said.