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Subscribe CBK approves Nedbank-NCBA deal Nigerian fintech Allawee folds into Paystack Yele Bademosi transitions to chairman at Onboard Namibia launches DigiNam World Wide Web 3 Opportunities M&A South Africa’s Nedbank gets CBK’s approval to acquire 66% of Kenyan lender NCBA Image Source: Tenor Remember the proposed acquisition of Kenyan digital-first bank NCBA by South African tier-1 lender Nedbank that has hogged headlines since the start of the year?
We’ve got a big development in that saga. On Monday, the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) said it had approved Nedbank’s acquisition of up to 66% of NCBA on August 28, clearing a major regulatory hurdle for the South African lender. The approval follows months of regulatory reviews and a shareholder offer that saw NCBA investors accept Nedbank’s proposal in exchange for cash and Nedbank shares.
State of play: The deal isn’t fully closed yet, but once completed, Nedbank will take control of NCBA, giving the South African lender a major foothold in East Africa. Nedbank will become NCBA’s majority owner, while the remaining 34% will stay in public hands. The Kenyan digital-first bank will also retain its brand, local management, and Nairobi headquarters.
Explain like I’m new here: In January, Nedbank announced that it wanted to acquire about two-thirds of NCBA through a tender offer, asking existing NCBA shareholders to offer up their shares for sale. Under the proposed deal, shareholders would receive 20% cash and 80% newly issued Nedbank