Description
We are continually evaluating expansion through the acquisition of selected sub-Saharan African financial services assets. These will range in scale from multi-national operations to smaller “bolt-on” purchases. This is intended to secure a more extensive geographic footprint to drive growth, bring benefits of scale, provide synergies and enable diversification of risk. We are, however, disciplined buyers, so we are not conducting a “ag planting” exercise.
When screening opportunities, we are looking for:
- countries exhibiting relative political stability, the rule of law and institutional frameworks in which we can operate to our standards of ethics and governance
- markets with strong prospects for sustainable growth
- fragmented markets that could benefit from consolidation
- institutions where we believe we can add value
- potential synergies and the cost savings from achieving them
- consistency with our overall strategy
Our transactions need to add shareholder value and deliver returns in excess of our cost of capital.