The Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa has approved Access Bank's proposed acquisition of an 80% stake in Finance Trust Bank Uganda, removing a significant regulatory obstacle for the cross-border banking transaction. COMESA granted its clearance in May 2024, allowing the deal to progress towards completion following its initial announcement in January 2024. The regional approval marks an important step in a process that requires sign-off from multiple authorities before the change of ownership can be effected.
Access Bank, the Nigerian lender with an expanding pan-African footprint, identified Finance Trust Bank Uganda as a strategic entry point into the Ugandan retail and microfinance banking market. Finance Trust Bank has developed a network oriented towards women-led small and medium enterprises and low-income households, a customer segment that Access Bank has described as central to its broader strategy of building inclusive financial services businesses across the African continent.
REGULATORY PATHWAY TO COMPLETION
Despite the COMESA clearance, the transaction is not yet complete. The Bank of Uganda, which regulates commercial banking activity within the country, must still grant its own approval before any transfer of control over Finance Trust Bank can take effect. The central bank's review assesses the transaction against local prudential standards, including the financial soundness of the acquirer, its plans for the acquired institution, and the suitability of proposed new management and controlling shareholders.
Final completion of the deal is expected in the second half of 2024, subject to the Bank of Uganda sign-off and the satisfaction of any remaining conditions set out in the share purchase agreement. The sequential structure of the approvals — a regional competition body first and the domestic banking regulator second — is the standard pathway for bank acquisitions across COMESA member states, where multi-layered regulatory clearance reflects both competition law obligations and national financial stability concerns.
COMESA's mandate covers competition and market concentration across its member states. In clearing the transaction, the authority found no material adverse effect on competition in the relevant Ugandan banking or financial services markets arising from the proposed change of ownership. The authority's analysis would have considered the market shares of Access Bank and Finance Trust Bank in the products and geographies where they operate.
ACCESS BANK'S CONTINENTAL EXPANSION
The Uganda deal is part of a wider expansion drive by Access Bank, which has pursued acquisitions and organic market entries across sub-Saharan Africa in recent years. The Nigerian bank has established or acquired presences in Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, Rwanda, and several other markets, positioning itself as one of the continent's most geographically diversified banking groups. Adding Uganda to that network extends the bank's footprint in East Africa and provides a connected corridor for trade finance and cross-border payments services.
Finance Trust Bank Uganda was founded as a microfinance institution before being upgraded to a commercial banking licence by the Bank of Uganda in 2013. Its emphasis on financial inclusion and women's economic empowerment has given it a differentiated customer base compared with the larger Ugandan commercial banks that are predominantly focused on corporate and institutional clients. Access Bank's management has indicated it intends to build on that identity rather than immediately repositioning the acquired institution.
The Ugandan banking sector has attracted interest from regional and international institutions drawn by the country's young population, growing formal economy, and relatively underpenetrated financial services market. Acquiring an existing licensed institution rather than seeking a greenfield banking licence is typically the faster and more cost-effective route into the market, which may explain the commercial rationale for the structure of the Access Bank transaction.