The Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) has granted Commercial International Bank (CIB) of Egypt consent to fully acquire Mayfair Bank Limited.
CIB will acquire the remaining 49% shares of Mayfair CIB Bank Limited; having entered the Kenyan market in April 2020 when it acquired 51% stake in Mayfair Bank Limited.
“We are grateful for the vote of confidence from the Central Bank of Kenya and its Governor, Dr. Patrick Njoroge,” Hussein Abaza, CEO and Managing Director of CIB Egypt.
In a statement, Hossam Rageh, Executive Director at Mayfair CIB, there are still great opportunities in Kenya.
“Kenya offers great opportunities, and we are excited to be part of the country’s business life and future. We will grow this bank as we continue to provide a first-class service to all our clients,” Rageh noted.
With 5 branches, Mayfair Bank has a presence in Nairobi, Eldoret and Mombasa.
Elsewhere, Equity Bank is set to acquire Spire Bank following a Ksh 510 million deal between the lender and Mwalimu Sacco.
According to Business Daily, the deal is treated as an asset purchase transaction which means Equity Bank will take over the assets and liabilities of Spire Bank rather than inject money into the acquisition.
Mwalimu Sacco CEO said the aforementioned money is kept in an escrow account and it will be used to pay Equity Bank.
The acquisition takes effect Monday, January 30.
“This follows approval by CBK on January 23, and the Cabinet Secretary for the National Treasury and Planning on January 24, 2023, pursuant to Section 9 of the Banking Act
“As was announced earlier, CBK welcomes this transaction which will enhance the stability of the Kenyan banking sector,” CBK said in a statement.
Spire Bank, formerly known as Equatorial Commercial Bank Limited (ECB), started operations in 1984 as a non-bank financial institution and converted into a commercial bank on December 13, 1995.
It merged with Southern Credit Banking Corporation Limited on June 1, 2010, and retained the name ECB.
In December 2014, Mwalimu National Cooperative Savings and Credit Society Limited (Mwalimu National) acquired a majority stake in the bank and then changed its name to Spire Bank Limited.
