Access Bank is currently eying the Acquisition of Standard Chartered Assets in Botswana, Uganda, and Zambia having previously acquired assets owned by the British bank in Angola and Sierra Leonne.
According to The Africa Report, this move is part of Asset Bank’s efforts to become one of Africa’s top five banking giants with the bank’s CEO, Roosevelt Ogbonna FCA, CFA confirming the move stating “Yes, we are interested in Standard Chartered’s assets in Botswana, Uganda and Zambia.”
Access Bank’s Expansion Moves
These acquisitions are in line with Access Bank’s strategy to enhance its banking network across Southern Africa and beyond, emphasizing its role in strengthening intra-African trade. These expansion efforts are in line with the bank’s goal of creating a robust platform that supports global payments and remittances efficiently.
Access Bank ultimately seeks to expand its global footprints and position itself as a strong global franchise in the banking and financial sectors.
Access Bank’s African Acquisitions
In recent times, Access Holdings through its subsidiary, Access Bank has been expanding its footprint across Africa especially East Africa through a series of acquisitions and partnerships especially with Standard Chartered. This is in a bid to become one of the top five banks in Africa.
Access Bank earlier in the year acquired the African Banking Corporation Tanzania (BancABC Tanzania) in a significant move for the bank’s African expansion, as a result of the acquisition Access bank secured a gain of N3.3 billion ($2 million) through a three-year deferred payment plan. With the acquisition completed, the Bank now operates under the name Access Bank Tanzania Limited. The bank also completed the acquisition of the consumer, private, and business banking operations of Standard Chartered Bank Tanzania, further solidifying its roots in the East African country.
In October, Access Holdings Plc also announced that its subsidiary, Access Bank Plc, had secured a provisional license from the Bank of Namibia to establish commercial operations in the country. The move underscored the bank’s commitment to building a robust Southern African banking network and solidifying its operations in Angola, Botswana, Mozambique, South Africa, and Zambia with its aim being to become major players in 19 African markets asides Nigeria in 2027.
Access Bank and Standard Chartered
In July 2023, Access Bank entered into an agreement with Standard Chartered for the acquisition of Standard Chartered’s shareholding in its subsidiaries in Angola, Cameroon, The Gambia, and Sierra Leone, and its Consumer, Private & Business Banking business in Tanzania subject to the approval of the respective local regulators and the banking regulator in Nigeria.
This was after Standard Chartered strategically decided to divest from a number of markets, namely Lebanon, Angola, Cameroon, Gambia, Sierra Leone, Zimbabwe, and Jordan, and to exit the CPBB (Consumer Private and Business Banking) business in Côte d’Ivoire and Tanzania in 2022.
In November 2024, it was confirmed the bank had completed the acquisition of Standard Chartered Bank Angola S.A and Standard Chartered Bank (Sierra Leone] Limited while work was ongoing to acquire Standard Chartered Bank’s subsidiaries in Cameroon, the Gambia and its Consumer, Private and Business Banking business in Tanzania.
Now the bank is planning to spread its wings further by acquiring Standard Chartered assets in Botswana, Uganda and Zambia to push its South and East African expansion.
