Access Holdings Plc announced on Friday the completion of its acquisition of Standard Chartered Bank South Africa for $600 million in cash, the largest cross-border banking acquisition by a Nigerian institution in history and one that gives the group a combined balance sheet of over $30 billion.

The deal, which was first announced in October 2025, received final regulatory approvals from the South African Reserve Bank and the Central Bank of Nigeria last week. Access Bank already operates in 20 African countries, and the South African acquisition adds a well-established retail and corporate banking franchise with 1.2 million customers.

Strategic rationale

Group CEO Roosevelt Ogbonna said the acquisition completes Access Bank's "African gateway" strategy, which aims to connect Nigeria's capital markets and trade finance capabilities with South Africa's more mature financial system and its role as a gateway to Southern and Eastern African markets.

"South Africa is the second-largest economy in Africa and the most sophisticated financial market. Being present there at scale is essential for any bank that aspires to be the continent's financial institution," Ogbonna told analysts on a conference call.