admininvestments in the banking and financial services sectors, said its chief development officer for Africa, Mr Mark Schneiders.
“Within the next two to three years, we would like our market value in the region to grow to US$500 million, with investments of at least US$120 million a year,” he said this week.
ADC holds 28 percent in Brainworks Capital, a local private equity investment company which has business interests in mining, agribusiness and financial services.
Brainworks recently increased its stake in regional banking group ABC Holdings to 52 percent from about 23 percent, after its US$50 million rights offer, which ADC underwrote.
Last week, ADC chief executive Mr Dirk Harbecke said the group was planning to raise its stake in its key banking assets, hinting it may take advantage of the distressed share price of ABCH to further increase its influence. ABC is a regional dual banking group with its primary listing in Botswana and a secondary listing on the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange.
“ADC’s strategy of becoming a pan-African banking group has taken a giant leap forward in the past weeks after the acquisition of a strategic stake in Union Bank of Nigeria and becoming the majority shareholder in BancABC,” he said.
“We aim to use the current distressed prices at BancABC to further increase our influence.”
The share price of ABCH dropped from around US0,95c at the end of 2011 to US0,55c by the end of the second quarter.
ABCH recently raised US$50 million to recapitalise all subsidiaries in Zimbabwe, Botswana, Zambia and Tanzania.
The raising of the capital placed all the subsidiaries, which trade as BancABC, either in the top tier or upper second tier of banks in countries in which the group operates.
Online Reporter