The Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) has approved Zenith Bank Plc’s proposed acquisition of 100% of Paramount Bank Limited, a mid-tier Kenyan lender.
The approval was announced in a statement by the CAK on Thursday though the deal still requires clearance from the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) and Nigerian regulators before completion.
According to the CAK, the approval is conditional on Zenith retaining all 78 Paramount Bank employees for at least 12 months after the transaction closes.
“The Authority has approved the proposed acquisition… on condition that the acquirer retains the target’s 78 employees for at least twelve months following completion,” the regulator said.
The CAK noted that the deal poses no competition risks, identifying employment as the main public interest concern tied to the transaction.
Deal Structure
Paramount Bank is a Tier III lender ranked 33rd out of 39 licensed banks in Kenya as of December 2024. It operates a bancassurance arm and an investment banking subsidiary.
The CAK emphasized that the acquisition would not alter Kenya’s banking market structure since Zenith currently has no operations in the country. Post-merger, Paramount’s market share remains unchanged, with rival banks controlling more than 99.8% of the market.
The authority defined the relevant product market as banking services and the geographic market as national, concluding the deal was “unlikely to lead to substantial prevention or lessening of competition.”
The acquisition of Paramount Bank aligns with Zenith Bank’s broader strategy to enter new markets, following rivals such as Access Bank, United Bank for Africa (UBA), and GTBank, which already operate in Kenya.
