Co-operative Bank of Kenya has announced plans to acquire Kenya’s second smallest bank Jamii Bora bank.The proposed acquisition will lead to the acquisition of 100 percent shareholding of Jamii Bora .
The acquisition comes ten years after Jamii Bora, which was established in 2010, merged with City Finance Bank (CFB), a private financial services provider which, in the past, had provided services to large corporations and high-net-worth individuals.
Co-op Bank CEO Gideon Muriuki in a past event
While welcoming the proposed acquisition, Central Bank of Kenya said the transaction between the two banks will diversify the business models of the two institutions and enhance the stability of the Kenyan banking sector.
“CBK welcomes the transaction which will diversify the business models of the two institutions and enhance the stability of the Kenyan banking sector,” said CBK in a statement.
As of December 31, 2019, Jamii Bora was ranked 38 out of 39 banks with a market share of 0.12 percent and 17 branches across the country.
The co-operative bank is among Kenya’s largest bank, predominantly owned by the 15-million-member Kenyan co-operative movement.
Other banks that have been acquired in the recent past include National Bank of Kenya, Habib Bank Kenya, Fidelity Commercial Bank, Giro Commercial Bank, Equatorial Commercial Bank, K-Rep Bank and Fina Bank.