Access Bank Speaks on Opening Dutch Desk After Taking Over Mauritius Bank
- Access Bank has relaunched its Dutch Desk to improve trade and economic ties between Nigeria and the Netherlands
- The bank also signed a memorandum of understanding with Invest International to create a new funding facility
- The bank’s MD claimed that the Dutch desk would help bridge the divide and change how people view Nigeria and the continent
Legit.ng journalist Zainab Iwayemi has 5 years of experience covering the Economy, Technology, and Capital Market.
In an effort to strengthen commercial and economic relations between Nigeria and the Netherlands, Access Bank has relaunched its Dutch Desk.
Source: UGC
Additionally, Access Bank and Invest Internatione inked a memorandum of agreement to develop a new funding facility as part of their efforts to increase prospects for Dutch businesses.
Roosevelt Ogbonna, MD/CEO of Access Bank Nigeria, stated during the memorandum of understanding (MOU) signing in Lagos that the relaunch fosters trust and closes gaps between Dutch companies and their Nigerian counterparts.
According to him,
“The question is why is it that we are going about setting up this desk? We’ve supplanted what is a traditional banking model by taking a coloration around behavior and culture and supplanting that on that traditional banking model and trying to make it work. And we have seen with several of the desks that it has happened exactly how we anticipated.”
He said that by aligning Dutch companies with Nigerian companies, the Dutch desk would assist close the gap and alter perceptions of the continent and Nigeria.
He said.
“So let’s create a platform that allows Dutch businesses looking for new markets and Nigerian businesses seeking to explore beyond our traditional trade routes to be able to find a way to do so.
“The partnership with Invest International ensures that we’re then able to support these businesses’ trade, either providing capital for payment and settlement or providing capital to ensure that they can make sustainable investments in their businesses through acquisition of fixed assets or conversion of their energy sources so that they can remain competitive. The Dutch desk will build trust, provide information, and ultimately support that with capital so that we can catalyse Dutch-Nigerian businesses as a support group.”
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According to Michiel Slootweg, Director of the Private Sector at Invest International, the action essentially promotes trade between the two nations, ThisDay reported.
He said,
“We have seen, of course, that times have been difficult, economically-wise, but we do see that actually foreign direct investment is picking up again. That’s also why we have the Dutch desk, to basically assist Dutch businesses who want to invest in Nigeria, and also assist Nigerian companies who want to export to the Netherlands.”
This followed report that Access Bank is on the verge of completing the takeover of the National Bank of Kenya (NBK) subject to regulatory approval from the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) and the Competitions Authority of Kenya (CAK).
Access Bank Secures Deal To Take Over Another Bank
Legit.ng reported that Access Holdings Plc, through its banking subsidiary, Access Bank UK Limited, had secured a deal to acquire a majority stake in Afrasia Bank Limited, Mauritius' fourth-largest bank by assets.
The deal was disclosed in a statement on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) signed by Sunday Ekwochi, Access Holdings’ secretary.
After recent Kenya and Tanzania acquisitions, the Afrasia Bank deal represents a strategic leap in Access Bank’s regional ambitions.
Proofread by Kola Muhammed, journalist and copyeditor at Legit.ng
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