NAIROBI, Kenya, Feb 23 – Support among Nedbank Group shareholders for the proposed acquisition of a 66 percent stake in NCBA Group has risen to 77.54 percent, up from 71.2 percent when the initial offer was tabled.
According to a notice by the South African lender, the bank has also secured approval from Kenya’s Capital Markets Authority (CMA) for an exemption from making a mandatory takeover offer to all NCBA shareholders.
In January, Nedbank submitted a tender offer to acquire approximately 66 percent of NCBA’s ordinary shares, a move that would hand it a controlling stake in the Kenyan financial services group if successful.
The remaining 34 percent of NCBA shares would continue trading on the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE).
The proposed transaction values NCBA at 1.4 times its book value. Shareholders who accept the tender offer would receive 20 percent of the consideration in cash, with the remaining 80 percent paid in Nedbank ordinary shares listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE).
NCBA operates in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Ivory Coast and Ghana, with 122 branches serving more than 60 million customers.
Nedbank, headquartered in South Africa, is among Africa’s largest financial institutions, with operations across Southern Africa and international offices in London, Dubai, the Isle of Man and Jersey.
