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Access Bank Holds Merger Talks With Another Bank

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By Dipo Olowookere

Nigerian lender, Access Bank Plc, is planning to acquire another financial institution as part of its aggressive expansion drive.

The company, which intends to be one of the biggest banks in Africa, is already in an advanced stage with the bank it wants to merge with.

A statement issued by the company said its subsidiary in Zambia, Access Bank Zambia Limited, wants to merge with Cavmont Bank Limited.

Business Post gathered that Cavmont Bank, located in Lusaka, the capital of Zambia, provides an array of banking services including in the areas of community banking, retail banking, investment, and corporate banking.

The bank, which was established in 2004, is believed to be worth over $100 million with Cavmont Capital Holdings Zambia Plc, a firm listed on the Lusaka Stock Exchange (LUSE), having 100 percent stake in the company.

In the notice to the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) on Wednesday, Access Bank said it plans to take over the 100 percent interest of Cavmont Capital in Cavmont Bank.

“Access Bank announces today that its wholly-owned subsidiary in Zambia, Access Bank Limited has entered into exclusive discussions with Cavmont Capital Holdings Zambia Plc regarding a potential transaction between Access Bank Zambia and Cavmont Bank Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Cavmont Capital.

“The potential transaction relates to the sale of 100 percent of Cavmont Capital’s interest in Cavmont Bank to Access Bank Zambia.

“There can be no certainty that a transaction will be agreed, nor as to the terms of any such agreement. The completion of a transaction would be subject to formal regulatory approvals,” the statement said.

“Access Bank will update the market as appropriate and in accordance with its disclosure obligations,” the notice, signed by the company secretary, Sunday Ekwochi, assured.

“Accordingly, shareholders are advised to exercise caution when dealing in Access Bank’s securities until a full announcement is made,” the lender advised.

In 2019, Access Bank completed its merger with the defunct Diamond Bank Plc. The deal was to make Access Bank, one of the big players in the corporate banking world, a formidable voice in the retail banking business.

Before the deal with the former Diamond Bank, Access Bank had acquired Intercontinental Bank, one of the biggest banks in Nigeria some years ago.

Dipo Olowookere is a journalist based in Nigeria that has passion for reporting business news stories. At his leisure time, he watches football and supports 3SC of Ibadan. Mr Olowookere can be reached via [email protected]

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Banking

UBA Resolves ‘Transfers to Other Banks’ Glitch on Mobile Banking App

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By Aduragbemi Omiyale

The United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc has restored full service to its mobile banking app after some customers experienced difficulties completing financial transactions from the platform.

Business Post reports that earlier, some UBA customers could not make fund transfers to other financial institutions from the mobile app.

The lender quickly swung into action to resolve the issue and has fully restored its mobile banking app service, with customers now able to send funds to other banks via the platform.

Confirming this development, the bank, in a notice to customers on Thursday afternoon, said, “We are pleased to inform you that the transfers to other banks service has been restored on the UBA Mobile Banking App.

“We sincerely apologise for any inconvenience this may have caused and reassure you of our commitment to continuously improve our services.”

While thanking them for their patience and understanding, UBA advised any customer still experiencing “any further issues [to] please contact our CFC support team.”

“For enquiries, please contact our 24-hour Customer Fulfilment Centre (CFC) on 02012808822 or send us an email at [email protected],” the message said.

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Ecobank Partners China’s XTransfer to Empower African SMEs Foreign Trade

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By Adedapo Adesanya

African lender, Ecobank, has partnered with China’s business-to-business (B2B) cross-border trade payment platform, XTransfer, to empower African Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) foreign trade.

XTransfer will leverage Ecobank’s extensive network across Africa, enabling its Chinese clients to collect funds in local African currencies while assisting African SMEs in making payments in their local currencies to negate foreign exchange (FX) issues.

The two parties have signed a landmark Memorandum of Understanding of Cooperation (MOU) to roll out comprehensive cross-border financial services that will facilitate trade between China and African countries.

In recent years, China and Africa have continued to deepen trade cooperation, with the scale of imports and exports rising rapidly. In 2023, bilateral trade reached a record $282 billion. From January to November 2024, China’s exports to Africa totalled $160 billion, a 1.4 per cent increase from the previous year, while imports from Africa reached US$107 billion, marking a substantial rise of 6.6 per cent.

Despite this growth, African SMEs engaged in foreign trade face numerous challenges related to cross-border payments and fund collections. These challenges include difficulties in opening accounts with traditional banks, a high risk of funds being frozen, difficulties in foreign exchange and related losses, lengthy remittance times and high remittance costs.

The partnership between XTransfer and Ecobank Group will foster collaboration between both parties to provide comprehensive cross-border payment solutions for African SMEs’ foreign trade.

XTransfer will leverage Ecobank’s extensive network across Africa, enabling its Chinese clients to collect funds in local African currencies while assisting African SMEs in making payments in their local currencies to negate foreign exchange issues.

The partnership also seeks to help reduce the costs of global trade and enhance the global competitiveness of African SMEs.

Speaking on this move, Mr Bill Deng, Founder and CEO of XTransfer, stated, “We are excited about the partnership with Ecobank. This collaboration represents a significant milestone for XTransfer and greatly enhances our global payment capabilities. Leveraging Ecobank’s extensive payment network in Africa will accelerate our business expansion in the region.

“We are looking forward to the synergies and opportunities this partnership will create. Together, we will drive innovation and improve the financial landscape, making financial services more efficient and accessible for African SMEs.”

On his part, Mr Jeremy Awori, CEO of Ecobank Group, said by collaborating with XTransfer, Ecobank is strengthening its position as a key player in the global payments industry by reducing trade barriers, enabling African SMEs to thrive in international markets and contributing to the continent’s sustainable development.

“We are proud to partner with XTransfer to advance seamless cross-border payment solutions between Africa and China. This partnership builds on our established strategy, which includes a representative office in China and a dedicated China desk.

“By integrating XTransfer’s cutting-edge solutions with our pan-African payment platform, we simplify payments, reduce transaction costs, and enable African businesses to thrive in global trade.”

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Shareholders Embrace Stanbic IBTC N148.7bn Rights Issue

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Stanbic IBTC

By Aduragbemi Omiyale

The N148.7 billion rights issue of Stanbic IBTC Holdings Plc has continued to attract the interest of shareholders of the company because of the track record of the financial services provider.

The rights issue commenced on January 15, 2025, and is expected to close of February 21, 2025. The exercise offers existing shareholders the opportunity to increase their stake in the company from the available 2,944,772,083 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each at N50.50 per share.

Business Post reports that the rights issue is structured on a ratio of five new ordinary shares for every 22 ordinary shares held as of October 29, 2024.

Stanbic IBTC created the rights issue to strengthen its capital base, enhance its funding capacity and position it for sustainable growth as it will enable the company’s banking subsidiary meet the new minimum capital requirement set by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), thereby ensuring regulatory compliance and potentially strengthening its Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR).

“The pricing of our rights issue acknowledges the confidence of our shareholders have in the company’s vision and strategy.

“We are committed to delivering value to our shareholders and stakeholders, and this rights issue is a critical step in achieving our goals,” the acting chief executive of the firm, Mr Kunle Adedeji, said when Stanbic IBTC Holdings held its Facts Behind the Rights Issue at the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited in Lagos last month,

“At Stanbic IBTC Holdings, we believe that strong shareholder support is the cornerstone of our growth.

“The rights issue reflects our stakeholders’ trust in our company and reinforces our commitment to delivering sustainable returns.

“Together, we will navigate the path to success and continue to achieve our strategic objectives,” he added.

On his part, the chief executive of Stanbic IBTC Bank, Mr Wole Adeniyi, said, “This is a significant milestone in our journey to becoming Nigeria’s leading financial services organisation and a critical step in our efforts to meet the evolving needs of our customers and stakeholders.

“We are committed to maintaining our leadership position in the industry, and this capital raise will enable us to invest in our business, drive innovation, and deliver sustainable returns to our shareholders.”

Speaking further, he expressed the gratitude of the company to its shareholders for demonstrating their “confidence in our ability to deliver long-term value.”

“This rights issue will enable us to build on our strengths, capitalise on new opportunities, and drive growth and profitability in the coming years.

“This is an exciting time for Stanbic IBTC Holdings and Stanbic IBTC Bank, and we are pleased to have commenced this important capital raise.

“We are well-positioned to drive growth, innovation, and customer satisfaction, and we look forward to continuing to deliver value to our stakeholders,” Mr Adeniyi said.

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