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Access Holdings Plc is considering exiting at least one of its foreign markets as Nigeria’s largest lender by assets moves to comply with Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) regulations limiting banks’ equity investments in overseas subsidiaries.
According to Bloomberg, the company’s Chairman, Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, disclosed this in an interview on the sidelines of the African Financial Industry Summit in Luanda, Angola, last week.
The banking group is said to have identified at least one underperforming subsidiary that could be disposed of as part of efforts to bring its foreign investments within regulatory limits.
- “If a subsidiary cannot meet its cost of capital and the strategic objectives for which it is set up, you should be ready to take a decision to exit,” Aig-Imoukhuede was quoted in the Bloomberg report,
- “Do we have one or two troublesome subsidiaries? I can think of one,” he added.
The potential exit comes as Access Holdings reviews its international operations to comply with the CBN’s directive restricting banks’ equity investments in foreign subsidiaries to no more than 10% of total shareholders’ funds.
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Access considers three options to meet CBN requirements
Access Holdings is pursuing three strategies to bring its foreign subsidiary investments within the regulatory threshold, according to its Chief Executive Officer, Innocent Ike.
Speaking during a conference call on Thursday, Ike said the options include recalling surplus capital from overseas subsidiaries, divesting minority shareholdings and restructuring some businesses.
He disclosed that the group has already completed one capital repatriation exercise involving its six targeted subsidiaries and is engaging regulators in five countries to facilitate the return of excess capital to Nigeria.
For Access Bank, the group’s banking subsidiary, investments in foreign subsidiaries stood at 19.4% of shareholders’ funds in May, significantly above the CBN’s 10% threshold. The lender was given 12 months by the regulator to address the excess exposure.
Ike said the group is working to bring the ratio within statutory limits ahead of the March deadline, while Aig-Imoukhuede indicated that the exercise could be completed earlier than initially anticipated.
- “We gave ourselves up till January next year, and I think we’re completing this ahead of schedule,” Aig-Imoukhuede said.
Access says international portfolio remains healthy
Despite the possibility of disposing of an overseas subsidiary, Aig-Imoukhuede maintained that the group’s international portfolio remains fundamentally strong.
He said the bank would continue reviewing its subsidiaries to ensure they deliver sustainable returns and meet the strategic objectives for which they were established.
- “You have to do dynamic portfolio management,” he said. “Every year, you’re looking” for ways to improve.
Access has previously exited foreign markets when operations failed to meet its strategic or financial expectations.
In 2014, the bank sold its loss-making Ivory Coast subsidiary to Cameroon’s Afriland First Group SA after the CBN restricted Nigerian lenders from using parent-bank capital to support foreign subsidiaries.
The directive at the time required banks to raise funding independently in their host markets or consider divestment.
Aig-Imoukhuede, however, expressed confidence in the group’s broader international operations, saying the regional presence continues to offer opportunities for growth.
Access Holdings sells stake in Ghana unit
Earlier in July, Nairametrics reported that Access Holdings Plc had completed the sale of a 7.44% stake in its Ghanaian subsidiary, a move analysts said was closely tied to the CBN rule capping how much local banks can hold in foreign units.
In a filing with the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) recently, Access Bank (Ghana) disclosed that its parent, Access Bank Plc, sold 12,085,318 ordinary shares representing 7.44% of the unit’s issued shares on July 15, 2026.
The sale went through the Ghana Stock Exchange with regulatory clearance, including a no-objection from the Bank of Ghana. Buyers included pension funds, institutional investors, and high-net-worth individuals.
