Access Holdings weighs selling an overseas unit to meet Nigeria's new investment cap

Why a sale is on the table

Access Holdings Plc operates in about 24 countries, but tighter Central Bank of Nigeria guardrails are prompting a portfolio check. Chairman Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede said one "troublesome" business could be sold to align with the rules.

The rules, introduced in June last year after Nigeria let the naira trade more freely and told banks to raise fresh capital, cap equity in foreign subsidiaries at 10 percent of total shareholders' funds. Access's bank unit stood at 19.4 percent in May, and it has 12 months to bring that down.

The plan to comply

Chief Executive Officer Innocent Ike said on a Thursday call that Access is weighing three paths to compliance. One avenue involves pulling excess capital out of six operating units, and one of those extractions has already been completed. The others are selling down minority shareholdings and pursuing restructurings.

He noted the bank is in discussions with supervisors across five countries to repatriate capital back to Nigeria. Ike also said the team aims to align subsidiary investments with statutory limits ahead of a March deadline. "We gave ourselves up till January next year, and I think we're completing this ahead of schedule," Aig-Imoukhuede said.

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Expansion wins, misses, and pressure points

After Nigeria's 2016 recession, banks pushed across the continent, and Access led the charge by buying assets from Standard Chartered Plc, Atlas Mara Ltd., and KCB Group Plc. That breadth has also strained some offshore units through higher operating costs, capital adequacy demands, and compliance burdens.

The South African arm continues to post losses, and the proposed acquisition of Bidvest Group Ltd.'s Bidvest Bank did not proceed. In Mozambique, performance suffered after acquiring African Banking Corp., but the unit returned to profit in 2025. In Kenya, the operation posted a first half 2026 loss and remained below the central bank's minimum core capital requirement. Access earlier disposed of its loss-making Ivory Coast operation in 2014 to Afriland First Group SA after the CBN prohibited parent-bank capital backing for offshore subsidiaries, compelling lenders to raise capital locally in host markets or exit.

What it means for investors

The task is clear: move from a 19.4 percent foreign investment ratio to a 10 percent ceiling. How Access blends capital recalls, minority stake sales, restructurings, and a targeted exit will determine capital release and the earnings trajectory of its regional footprint. Leadership still sees upside from the network too, with Aig-Imoukhuede saying, "The portfolio is very healthy."

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