Equity Bank Rwanda, on January 3, started revamped operations across the country, following the completion of a merger with Cogebanque Plc, with the acquisition of 99.8 percent stake.
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The acquisition first announced in June 2023, saw the bank acquire shares from the Government of Rwanda, Rwanda Social Security Board, Sanlam Vie Plc, and Ms. Judith Mugirasoni (the Sellers), with the remaining shareholding held by three other shareholders.
Going forward, all former Cogebanque branches will be rebranded to Equity Bank.
"The merged entity will have a more extensive national presence, growing its reach to 46 branches, 59 ATMs, 4,516 agents and 1,777 merchants. This network will enhance accessibility for our members and communities, ensuring a broader network that caters to diverse geographic locations."
While the transition will last for six months, bank officials say there will be no major changes and clients will continue accessing financial products in an improved manner
Hannington Namara, the Managing Director of Equity Bank Rwanda, said that the creation of the merger has enabled the bank to position itself to where it wanted to be and that clients remain at the heart of operations.
"For former Cogebanque customers, this means that they are now part of a wider network in the region where they can make direct transactions from any country with our presence using their account.”
He emphasized that customers from both former entities should be assured to continue to enjoy existing financial services with transactions of deposits, loans and interests remaining unchanged, the only change will be the rebranding of pay checks and cards.
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With the digitization of most financial products where customers serve themselves from their smart gadgets, Namara said "it is our desire that branches become advisory centres to discuss their financial needs.”
He noted that the process of forming one institution was done upon fulfilling confirmatory due diligence, execution of definitive agreements, regulatory approvals from the Central Bank of Kenya, the National Bank of Rwanda, the COMESA Competition Commission, and corporate approvals.
In addition, the staff were selected upon competence from both entities and only 70 employees were classified as redundant in different positions, from the decision of both boards of directors and a group of experts. The bank now employs about 700 staff.
2024 banking priorities
Namara said that the merger brings increased opportunity to participate in the economic development of the country by financially supporting businesses in various sectors, mainly through the Africa Recovery and Resilience Plan, a multi-pronged plan to drive the socio-economic transformation of Africa through a collaborative and ecosystem.
The bank, he noted, will focus on supporting Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) with a target of 65 percent of total loans while 30 percent is specifically targeting the agriculture sector, and 10 percent towards corporates and other segments. This will be coupled with business training, the use of technology to innovate, and empowering more businesses into exports to offset the trade deficit gap of the country.
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The bank will also be able to enroll a bigger number of top-performing scholars in the Equity Leadership Program because of the increased branches where they get posted for paid professional internships after undergoing boot camp to empower them with leadership skills and banking operations, prior joining local or global universities.