GTCO’s acquisition of InvestOne revs up competition in Nigeria’s PFA space
In what signals an important milestone in the corporate reorganisation of Nigeria’s top lender, Guaranty Trust Holding Company (GTCO), evolving from a pure play banking franchise, to actualizing its vision of creating an ecosystem of financial services that will enable the holding financial company to offer greater and more rewarding experiences, has completed the acquisition of Investment One Pension Managers Limited (IOPM) and Investment One Funds Management Limited (IOFM).
The company, in a disclosure filed to the stock exchange, informing the investing public of the recent development, said the companies are now fully owned subsidiaries of Guaranty Trust Company Plc, having met all regulatory requirements.
In a 2020 conference call, the bank hinted at its possible business lines to include pensions, asset management and payments. This followed the announcement of the receipt of Approval-in-Principle, as well as, “No-objection” from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), in connection with the then proposed scheme to proceed with the formal process of the banks restructuring into a financial holding company (HoldCo).
The then Guaranty Trust Bank plc (now Guaranty Trust Company Plc), also stated at the time that its expansion into these business lines would be made possible through the acquisition of small existing businesses that will be grown organically.
In the notice to the stock exchange, Segun Agbaje, group chief executive officer, GTCO Plc, said: “We are excited about our foray into the wealth management space. It provides us with the opportunity of becoming a one-stop-shop for financial services and products that will empower our customers. We will focus on replicating our digital-first customer-centric retail strategy to create distribution channels for wealth solutions that we will offer to both institutional and retail clients.”
Agbaje further noted that with the acquisition, the bank had been positioned to add value to the asset management business in Nigeria and compete favourably with global wealth managers.
Guaranty Trust Holding Company also noted, in a statement to its customers on the acquisition, that the group is well positioned to expand its reach to serve more markets and deliver on its promise of championing Africa’s growth.
“Going forward, our products and services will include innovative Pension Fund and Wealth Management solutions alongside the existing banking products and services. What this means for you is that we can now offer the full range of your financial needs – from banking services to wealth management and pension solutions in one seamless experience,” the company said.