The Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) has approved Zenith Bank Plc’s proposed acquisition of 100% of Paramount Bank Limited, a mid-tier Kenyan lender.
The decision marks a major step in Zenith’s entry into East Africa’s largest financial market, clearing a key regulatory hurdle.
The approval was announced in a statement by the CAK on Thursday.
The deal still requires clearance from the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) and Nigerian regulators before completion.
What the statement is saying
According to the CAK, the approval is conditional on Zenith retaining all 78 Paramount Bank employees for at least 12 months after the transaction closes.
“The Authority has approved the proposed acquisition… on condition that the acquirer retains the target’s 78 employees for at least twelve months following completion,” the regulator said.
The CAK noted that the deal poses no competition risks, identifying employment as the main public interest concern tied to the transaction.
Market Impact and Structure
Paramount Bank is a Tier III lender ranked 33rd out of 39 licensed banks as of December 2024. It operates a bancassurance arm and an investment banking subsidiary.
The CAK emphasized that the acquisition would not alter Kenya’s banking market structure since Zenith currently has no operations in the country. Post-merger, Paramount’s market share remains unchanged, with rival banks controlling more than 99.8% of the market.
The authority defined the relevant product market as banking services and the geographic market as national, concluding the deal was “unlikely to lead to substantial prevention or lessening of competition.”
Strategic expansion by Zenith Bank
Zenith Bank, listed on both the Nigerian and London stock exchanges, has been pursuing aggressive expansion beyond West Africa.
The acquisition of Paramount Bank aligns with its broader strategy to enter new markets, following rivals such as Access Bank, United Bank for Africa (UBA), and GTBank, which already operate in Kenya.
In 2025, Access Holdings paid $109.6 million to acquire the National Bank of Kenya (NBK) from KCB Bank Group, underscoring the growing interest of Nigerian banks in East Africa.
Capital raise fuels growth plans
Zenith’s ambitious expansion is supported by a N614.65 billion hybrid capital raise completed last year, which boosted its capital base by 160%.
Speaking at the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) closing gong ceremony in October, Group Managing Director and CEO Adaora Umeoji highlighted the strategic importance of the capital raise.
“Since the capital raise exercise, we’ve been able to use part of the money to expand our footprints. We started by opening our Paris branch, and we are going to move from there to Côte d’Ivoire, which we are already processing the license,” Umeoji said
She added that the Côte d’Ivoire license would grant Zenith passporting rights into eight additional Francophone markets, aligning with the bank’s strategy to follow its customers into high-growth economies.
What you should know
In November 2025, Zenith Bank Plc confirmed that it has initiated regulatory engagement as part of its broader strategic objective to expand into the East African financial ecosystem.
The bank clarified at the time that while it is actively exploring regional growth opportunities, including the potential acquisition of financial institutions in East Africa, no definitive transaction has been concluded at this time.
