5th February, 2014
Guaranty Trust Bank Plc, (GTBank), a foremost African Banking Group, has now concluded the acquisition of a 70% stake in Fina Bank Group, after securing the required regulatory approvals in the 3 East African countries – Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda as well as in Nigeria.
GTBank acquired a 70% stake in Fina Bank Group through a combination of capital injection as well as the acquisition of shares from its current shareholders for a total cash consideration of 8.6 billion Kenya Shillings.
The acquisition brings together two highly successful organizations with expertise across all banking segments and a new entity in each country called Guaranty Trust Bank Kenya, Guaranty Trust Bank Rwanda and Guaranty Trust Bank Uganda.
Headquartered in Lagos, Nigeria, GTBank has a vast business outlay spanning Africa and the United Kingdom and employs over 12,000 personnel in Nigeria, Cote d’Ivoire, Gambia, Ghana, Liberia, Sierra Leone and the United Kingdom.
GTBank has evolved over the past two decades to become one of Africa’s leading banks with a unique reputation for innovation, excellent customer service, corporate social responsibility and internationally accepted corporate governance standards.
Speaking on the acquisition, the Group Managing Director of GTBank; Segun Agbaje said: “this acquisition makes strategic sense for our combined customers and shareholders. Fina Bank has over the years built an enviable banking institution in East Africa, our combined strengths will help us build an attractive portfolio of leading products, services and marketing capabilities.
“We can now deepen existing and future customer relationships with differentiated capabilities to exceed customer expectations and grow market share. This merger also provides us with an attractive foothold in Kenya, Rwanda, and Uganda.”
According to him, “over the next few months we will be in the process of integrating the new Fina Bank Group into the Guaranty Trust Bank Group. We assure you that this will not affect our operations and level of service delivery to our customers.”
The founder and current Chairman of Fina Bank Group, Mr. Dhanu Chandaria, also stated: “We are delighted to partner with GTBank, an extremely successful African bank, and with whom we share a common philosophy on integrity, governance and transparency. It is an honour for me to have been approached for a partnership with GTBank, whose high standards and capabilities we have been able to appreciate over the past 18 months.
“We look forward to working together to continuing to build the Bank, as part of the GTBank Group, leveraging on our respective strengths and creating a winning combination for all our stakeholders in East Africa.”