Recall that Investogist reported on 8 July reported that discussion is ongoing for the acquisition of 100% equity interest in Cavmont Bank Zambia Ltd by Access Bank Zambia (ABZ) Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Access Bank Plc.
The Board of Access Bank Plc, on Thursday announced that ABZ has entered into a definitive agreement with Cavmont Capital Holdings Zambia (CCHZ) Plc, regarding the proposed acquisition and subsequent merger of the operation of Cavmont Bank into Access bank Zambia. The transaction is expected to be to be completed during the fourth quarter of 2020.
This is according to the notification issued to the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) by Access Bank Plc on Thursday, signed by the company secretary, Sunday Ekwochi.
Under the proposed agreement which is subject to the approval of the “relevant shareholders”, Access Bank Zambia will acquire the “entire issued ordinary share capital, assets and liabilities of Cavmont Bank.”
According to the agreement, Capricorn Group Limited, the ultimate majority shareholder of CCHZ, will invest at least $16.5 million of preference shares into ABZ. The preference shares will be held by Capricorn for five year period, after which it will be acquired by Access Bank Plc.
- Have you read?
- OPEC accounts for over 79% of World proven oil reserve
- Unilever Plc to conclude separation of its tea business by the end of 2021
Herbert Wigwe, Group Managing Director of Access Bank Plc, while commenting on the transaction said that “Access Bank is focused on building the scale needed to become a leading bank in its key operating markets, through leveraging the right partnerships. This transaction underscores our approach, and is another stepping stone towards delivering on our strategic aspirations of becoming the World’s Most Respected African Bank, and Africa’s Gateway to the World. It will strengthen our presence in Zambia, while furthering our footprint for growth in the COMESA region, Africa’s Largest free trade area.
“Over the years, we have worked to build a sustainable international bank of African origin that can expand the potential of businesses, support economic prosperity, facilitate trade and investment and extend the power of banking to millions of people, who do not yet have the financial tools to achieve their dreams. This proposed transaction aligns with that strategy.”
Access Bank is into the business of commercial banking. It was incorporated on February 8th 1989 and listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange in 1998, under the financial services sector and banking subsector.
The bank operates over 600 branches in 12 countries. It has over 36 million customers and employs 28,000 people in Nigeria, Sub-Saharan Africa and the United Kingdom, with representative offices in China, Lebanon India and the UAE.
The share price dropped by 0.78% to close at N6.35 per share on Thursday on the Nigerian Stock Exchange.
Written by by;
Ifunanya Ikueze
