One of Morocco’s biggest lenders Attijariwafa Bank has acquired a 75 percent stake in Rwanda’s second-largest bank, Cogebanque few weeks after it opened a subsidiary in Chad and a successful acquisition of Barclays Egypt operations.
Attijariwafa Bank CEO Mohamed Kettani is part of King Mohammed VI’s entourage as the monarch tours Rwanda, Tanzania and Ethiopia – three countries that have recognized the self-proclaimed, Algeria-backed Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, against Morocco’s position on the Western Sahara issue.
Cogebanque is the second-largest bank in Rwanda in terms of assets equalling to $226 million at the end of 2015. The bank has moved up in size from 5th to 2nd place nationally over the past three years, but remains far behind in value to the No. 1 Bank of Kigali.
Rwandan President Paul Kagame said the deal was worth $41 million and Attijariwafa confirmed the deal still needs regulatory approval from both Moroccan and Rwandan authorities.
Attijariwafa Bank has subsidiaries across Africa and Europe. And the CEO was quoted saying they have a ‘keen eye’ on the East African Market particularly Kenya.
