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Access Bank, a Nigerian multinational commercial bank, is set to acquire an estimated 80% shareholding in Finance Trust Bank.

The transaction, expected to conclude in the first half of 2024, aligns with the current trend among commercial banks seeking to boost their capital to meet evolving regulatory requirements.

Access Bank, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Access Holdings Plc, operates as a commercial bank in about 20 countries, with Access Holdings Plc listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

Annet Mulindwa, the Managing Director of Finance Trust Bank, expressed that the transaction will empower the bank to “offer our customers a broader array of innovative products and services.”

Roosevelt Ogbonna, the Managing Director of Access Bank PLC, highlighted, “The prospective acquisition of a majority equity stake in Finance Trust Bank marks an important milestone for Access Bank as we strengthen our regional presence in the East African Community trade region.”

As part of the new capital rules, commercial banks were mandated to increase their minimum capital levels to sh120b ($32.5m) by the close of December 2023. In 2024, the Bank of Uganda expects commercial banks to rise their minimum capital to sh150b ($40.7m), an additional sh30b before the end of December 2024.

As of December 2022, Finance Trust reported total assets of sh441b. Its share capital was reported at sh27.7b, and a core capital position of sh60b during the year under review.

The bank, headquartered in Katwe Kampala, operates a network of nearly 34 branches, with 70% of these branches located in rural areas.

Finance Trust Bank, originally registered as an NGO in 1984 under the name Uganda Women’s Finance and Credit Trust Limited, underwent subsequent changes, obtaining an operating license on November 11, 2013. The institution transitioned to a Microfinance Deposit-taking Institution on October 12, 2005.