NAIROBI, Kenya, Jul 11 – Barclays Bank of Kenya will need more time to rebrand to ABSA as eight of the nine markets in Africa today started switching to the ABSA brand, marking the end of the century-old bank in Africa.
Barclays Kenya Chief Executive Jeremy Awori says the local arm will continue to operate as Barclays Bank of Kenya until June 2020 which is the deadline for the revamp.
Awori says the rebrand of Barclays Africa to Absa brings a new opportunity for the bank to have a fresh start that will see the bank operate as an African brand.
“We are excited that we have the chance to be one of the biggest regional banks of the continent. We will also have the benefit of a local feel, local decision making, speed of execution, and relevance to our Kenya customers,” he told Journalists on Wednesday.
Barclays Africa Group Limited officially changed its name to Absa Group Limited Wednesday and said it will rename its Barclays Bank subsidiaries in Botswana, Ghana, Kenya, Mauritius, Mozambique, Seychelles, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia within the next two years, subject to approvals.
The name change signals the start of a new era for the group as a standalone African banking group with deep roots on the continent and more than 100 years of experience in Africa’s banking sector.
Absa Group, which plans to open offices in the UK and US, also launched a new brand design as an expression of its new identity as a forward-looking bank in a digital era. The group’s new business purpose statement is helping to “bring your possibility to life”.
“Our new brand is an expression of our new group identity as a standalone African bank with global scalability,” said Absa Group Chief Executive Officer Maria Ramos. “A single name and brand will enable us to unite behind a single identity, purpose and strategy.”
Following the rebrand, Absa Group started trading under its new name and new share code (ABG) on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange
The group name and brand change sets in motion one of Africa’s largest rebranding programmes as eventually all Absa and Barclays ATMs, forms, branches, stationery, platforms and other assets across 12 countries will be updated with the new Absa brand design.
