<<Print>>

South African Bank, FirstRand says it is about to finalize a deal to enter Ghana and Nigerian markets. The Group CEO of the Bank Sizwe Nxasana made the comment in Mumbai, India this week as FirstRand opened a unit in that country. There were earlier merger talks between FirstRand Bank and Merchant bank to expand its operations in Ghana. It is unclear though whether earlier reports that talks between the two banks had broken down, have been rectified or not. The Group CEO Mr Nxasana in his statements said the bank is exploring opportunities for both acquisitions and new licences in Ghana and Nigeria. Analysts have previously said the group could either buy one of the banks rescued by the Nigerian central bank when it injected $4bn in 2009 into troubled banks as part of a reform of the country�s banking sector, or FirstRand could start a greenfield project as it has done in new markets such as Zambia and Tanzania. FirstRand�s entry into the Nigerian retail market, where rival Standard Bank is already a major player, will atone for its failure last year to buy Nigeria�s Sterling Bank after disagreement on price. It is believed the deal would have cost up to $400m.