Access Bank Zambia , a subsidiary of Access Holdings Plc is set to acquire African Banking Corporation Zambia Ltd following the final approval it got from the Central bank of Zambia to embark on the acquisition and merge the bank into its existing operations,

In a statement released and signed by Sunday Ekwochi, Company secretary Access Holdings disclosed that the Central Bank of Nigeria and Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa Competition Commission had earlier granted their “no objection” to the transaction in 2022.

“Access Holdings Plc is pleased to announce that Access Bank Zambia Ltd., a subsidiary of its flagship subsidiary, Access Bank, has received final regulatory approval from the Central Bank of Zambia for the acquisition and merger of African Banking Corporation Zambia Ltd into its existing operations,” he said.

The acquisition will see .Access Zambia move towards integrating and merging Atlas Mara Zambia into its operations, which is expected to create one of the top five banks in Zambian .

Herbert Wigwe, the Group Chief Executive Access Holdings,while commenting on the deal said that the transaction followed its earlier acquisition and merger of Cavmont Bank Plc.

“The transaction builds on our earlier acquisition and merger of Cavmont Bank Plc into Access Bank Zambia and underscores our resolve to strengthen our presence in Zambia, a key African market that fits into our strategic focus on geographic earnings growth and diversification.

“The combination of the two banks will create significant synergies between Access Zambia’s world class wholesale and transaction banking capabilities and Atlas Mara Zambia’s market leading retail and public sector capabilities to form a market leading universal banking platform that will greatly impact the Zambia market,” he said

The transaction is expected to be completed by Q3, 2023