Equity investor, Arise, injects $75m into Ecobank
An equity investor, Arise B.V., has made a $75 million Additional Tier 1 investment in Ecobank Transnational Incorporated, the parent company of the Ecobank Group.
ETI, in a statement on Monday, said the investment would optimise and improve its Tier 1 capital by $75 million.
According to the statement, the Basel III compliant instrument is the first AT1 instrument issued by ETI and a landmark transaction in the sub-Saharan Africa region.
It said the investment by Arise, a leading equity investor in financial institutions in sub-Saharan Africa and one of ETI’s existing major institutional shareholders, demonstrated the support, commitment and capacity of Ecobank’s international shareholder base.
The statement said the additional investment would be used by ETI for its general corporate purposes, which would include loan growth and strengthening the capital buffers of profitable subsidiaries in two of the group’s cornerstone regions, Francophone West Africa and Anglophone West Africa.
The Group Chief Executive Officer of ETI, Ade Ayeyemi, said, “This investment by Arise is a testament to continued support and confidence from our shareholders; their commitment to, and belief in our strategy which we remain focused on executing to deliver value to our shareholders and excellence to our customers.
“Indeed, in addition to improving our double leverage ratio, it is also a good boost for the firm and its staff.”
The Chief Executive Officer of Arise, Deepak Malik, said, “ETI is our primary banking investment in Francophone West Africa and Anglophone West Africa. We are very supportive of ETI’s growth ambitions and its ability to increase financial services to Agri, SMEs and retail customers.
“Our investment will also strengthen the balance sheet of ETI and provide additional risk capital.”
The statement noted that the AT1 investment followed ETI’s $350 million subordinated Sustainability Eurobond issued in June 2021 which was very well received by international investors across multiple continents.
The Eurobond, which qualifies as Tier 2 capital, is listed on the London Stock Exchange.
