AccessCorp Gets Regulators’ Nod To Acquire Majority Stake In First Guarantee Pension

Access Corporation has received the go-ahead to acquire a majority stake in First Guarantee Pension Limited.

The go-ahead is sequel to a “No Objection” from both the National Pension Commission ( PenCom) and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on the transaction which completion is subject to all regulatory approvals.

Consequently, both companies have entered into a definitive agreement, paving the way for AccessCorp to acquire major equity in the pension firm.

The acquisition is a step in the direction to move out of the narrow banking business to a financial service holding company, gaining relevant scale across Africa, global monetary centres and beyond -banking verticals.

The Group Chief Executive,
Herbert Wigwe sees the transaction as a step up to greater relevance on the global financial service stage.

“Over the past two decades, we have set our sights on and delivered on an ambitious plan to transform the African financial services landscape, focusing on banking, and we have created Africa’s leading bank and the largest bank by customer base”.

“Given the corporation’s objectives of ecosystem optimisation, the pension business is a natural fit given its large customer base on both the wholesale and retail scales”.

“We will leverage our well-established culture and strong corporate governance risk management cutting-edge technology and digital capabilities to deliver high standards of professionalism in pension asset management to the benefit of our stakeholders.

Wigwe said the Corporation will update the market as appropriate and follow its disclosure obligations.

Access Bank in March concluded arrangements for its transition from a commercial banking group to a holding company (holdco) after commenting on the process in December 2021.

The lender in April 2021 acquired a 78.15 per cent shareholding in African Banking Corporation of Botswana Limited (BancABC Botswana, a subsidiary of Atlas Mara Limited, ABC Holdings Limited is coming barely three weeks after it got approval to buy South African bank, Gro bank Limited.

In January 2021, Access Bank disclosed that it has acquired Zambian-based Cavmont Bank Limited after key conditions were met. This was after it had earlier received regulatory approvals to start operations in Mozambique under the name Access Bank Mozambique, S.A. (Access Bank Mozambique).