International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the funds managed by its Asset Management Company has sold its 14.1% stake in Ecobank Transnational Incorporated (ETI) to Arise B.V, an Investment House with a strong developmental mandate for Sub-Saharan Africa with a combined asset value in excess of US$740m.
A statement by the Ecobank Group noted that J. P. Morgan Securities PLC acted as Sole Placement Agent and Sole Financial Advisor to IFC and the funds managed by AMC in the transaction.
Paolo Martelli, Senior Advisor at IFC described the transaction as part of the corporation’s ordinary asset portfolio rotation, noting that divestment is coming over 10 years.
With the period, he said IFC’s investment in Ecobank “has helped to increase access to credit for entrepreneurs and SMEs in Sub Saharan African Countries (including in IDA countries) in which the bank operates, achieving the development impact we sought when we made the investment. IFC maintains its strong commitment to the development of the Sub Saharan African Region and is continuing to invest in other projects in these countries.”
Commenting also, Deepak Malik, Chief Executive Officer of Arise expressed happiness at the investment which is “in line with our core business mandate of investing in Africa’s local prosperity.
Arise, he continued, “aims to collaborate with local Financial Service Providers (FSPs) in Sub – Saharan Africa to boost economic growth through strengthening the local banking sector. This transaction with ETI will see Arise collaborate with Ecobank to advance financial inclusion on the continent”.
Welcoming Arise to ETI, Ade Ayeyemi, the Chief Executive Officer, expressed belief “that there would be a strong synergy in our core objectives especially in ensuring and enshrining financial inclusion and the potential for the development of our continent. We must also take the opportunity to extend our deep appreciation to IFC for its commitment to and support for Ecobank in the last 10 years. We made meaningful progress with strong collaboration and look forward to continuing to work with IFC in other areas in the future”.