Access Bank Zambia Gets Regulatory Approval For African Banking Corporation Acquisition

Access Holdings Plc has announced that Access Bank Zambia Limited, a subsidiary of its flagship subsidiary, Access Bank Plc, has received final regulatory approval from the Central Bank of Zambia for the acquisition and merger of African Banking Corporation Zambia Limited into its existing operations.

This was stated in a release signed by the company secretary, Access Holdings, Sunday Ekwochi.

According to the release, the Central Bank of Nigeria(CBN) and Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa Competition Commission had earlier granted their ‘no objection’ to the transaction in 2022.

“Access Zambia will now move towards integrating and merging Atlas Mara Zambia into its operations, which is expected to create one of the top five banks in Zambia,” it said.

Speaking on the transaction, Group chief executive of Access Holdings, Dr. Herbert Wigwe said: “the transaction builds on our earlier acquisition and merger of Cavmont Bank Plc into Access Bank Zambia and underscores our resolve to strengthen our presence in Zambia, a key African market that fits into our strategic focus on geographic earnings growth and diversification.”

Wigwe added that the combination of the two banks will create significant synergies between Access Zambia’s world class wholesale and transaction banking capabilities and Atlas Mara, Zambia’s market leading retail and public sector capabilities to form a market leading universal banking platform that will greatly impact the Zambia market.

The Holding Company said,  the transaction is expected to be completed in third quarter (Q3), 2023.