EQUITY GROUP MAKES PROGRESS ON ACQUISITION PLANS IN THE DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO

 Equity Group Holdings, (EGH) has entered into a share purchase agreement with George Arthur Forrest, to purchase 66.53% of the shares held by Mr. Forrest inBanque Commercial du Congo (BCDC), a public limited company (société anonyme – S.A.) licensed by the Banque Central du Congo in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Following completion of the transaction, the BCDC business will eventually be amalgamated with that of EGH’s existing banking subsidiary in DRC, Equity Bank Congo S.A. (EBC).  The agreement is subject to regulatory approvals from among others, the Central Bank of Kenya, Banque Centrale du Congo, the COMESA Competition Commission and the board approvals of BCDC and EGH.

The agreement specifies that EGH will pay a cash consideration of US Dollars one hundred and five million (USD 105 million) for the 625,354 shares to be purchased inclusive of dividends declared after 1^stJanuary 2019 in respect of the financial year ending on 31 December 2019 .

EGH also proposes to increase its shareholding in EBC. In this regard, EGH shareholders approved the purchase by EGH of the shares held by KfW comprising 7.6% of the issued share capital of EBC following the exercise of a put option granted to KfW under a shareholders’ agreement relating to EBC, entered into between among others EGH and KfW. The proposed acquisition of the shares held by KfW is also subject to the approval of Banque Centrale du Congo.

Equity Group Holdings Plc CEO and Managing Director, Dr. James Mwangi said this is an opportunity for the Group to take further steps towards the delivery of its vision of building sub-Saharan Africa’s premier financial institution through delivering innovative products and services to customers,  mainly through  the effective use of technology.

By acquiring BCDC and the KfW stake in EBC, EGH will expand its footprint in DRC. The Group aims to provide access to competitive, tailored financial services to transform people’s lives and livelihoods, expand opportunities for wealth creation whilst also delivering significant value to its stakeholders.