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Absa Group
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Absa Group
Absa Group Limited, commonly known and stylized simply as absa (formerly the Amalgamated Banks of South Africa (ABSA) until 2005 and Barclays Africa Group Limited until 2018), is a multinational banking and financial services conglomerate based in Johannesburg, South Africa and listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. It offers personal and business banking, credit cards, corporate and investment banking, wealth and investment management and bank assurances.
Operating in 10 Sub-Saharan African countries including in-house South Africa, Botswana, Ghana, Kenya, Mauritius, Mozambique, Seychelles, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia, the conglomerate maintains representative offices in Namibia and Nigeria and internationals offices in London and New York City, as well as a technology support office in the Czech Republic. Absa had assets of R1.9 trillion as of June 2024.
Absa Group Limited recently announced that its board of directors has appointed Kenny Fihla, a senior financial services executive with 20 years of experience, as its new Group Chief Executive Officer, effective 17 June 2025, and subject to regulatory approval.
Absa Group began with the incorporation Amalgamated Banks of South Africa (ABSA) Limited in 1986 from a merger of the United Building Society Holdings South Africa, Allied Bank South Africa, Volkskas Bank Group and certain interests of the Sage Group. In 1992, ABSA acquired the entire shareholding of the Bankorp Group (which included TrustBank, Senbank and Bankfin). In 1997, ABSA changed the name of the holding company to ABSA Group Limited and adopted a new corporate identity. It consisted of four main operating divisions, whose brands; "United", "Volkskas", "Allied" and "TrustBank" brands were retired the following year in favor of the ABSA brand.
In May 2005, Barclays of the United Kingdom purchased 56.4 percent stake in Absa, which was criticized by the then-governor of the South African Reserve Bank, Tito Mboweni, who said he "had yet to see the benefits of Barclays' management of Absa". With the acquisition, Absa Group Limited was rebranded as Barclays Africa Group Limited.
Finweek Bank Charges Reports from 2008 through 2010 found Barclays Africa Group Holdings Limited to be the most expensive bank in South Africa. Pay-as-you-transact (PAYT) fees increased 82 percent from 2005 to 2010. The 2012, Finweek Bank Charges Report ranked Absa's Gold Value Bundle as the cheapest package option amongst the four banks that were compared. The report has also shown Absa's PAYT pricing structure to have reduced by 25 percent by 2013, leaving it third cheapest in the overall ranking at that time.
In 2013, the group acquired the entire issued share capital of Barclays Africa Limited and issued 129,540,636 consideration shares to Barclays Africa Group Holdings Limited (a wholly owned subsidiary of Barclays) thus increasing the shareholding of Barclays plc to 62.3 percent. The Consideration Shares were listed on the JSE from the commencement of trading on 31 July 2013. The name change from "Absa Group Limited" to "Barclays Africa Group Limited" was completed in August 2013.
In 2017, the South African Public Protector, Busisiwe Mkhwebane, found that the bailout of R1.125 billion that Absa's predecessor Bankorp Group had received between 1985 and 1992 from the Reserve Bank was illegal, and recommended that Absa be forced to pay back R2.25 billion, the current equivalent of the amount. The report was set aside by the Pretoria High Court, finding that "The public protector did not conduct herself in a manner which would be expected from a person occupying the office of the public protector." The court assessed some costs of the case personally against Mkhwebane due to her conduct, an order upheld by the Constitutional Court of South Africa in July 2019.
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Absa Group
Absa Group Limited, commonly known and stylized simply as absa (formerly the Amalgamated Banks of South Africa (ABSA) until 2005 and Barclays Africa Group Limited until 2018), is a multinational banking and financial services conglomerate based in Johannesburg, South Africa and listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. It offers personal and business banking, credit cards, corporate and investment banking, wealth and investment management and bank assurances.
Operating in 10 Sub-Saharan African countries including in-house South Africa, Botswana, Ghana, Kenya, Mauritius, Mozambique, Seychelles, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia, the conglomerate maintains representative offices in Namibia and Nigeria and internationals offices in London and New York City, as well as a technology support office in the Czech Republic. Absa had assets of R1.9 trillion as of June 2024.
Absa Group Limited recently announced that its board of directors has appointed Kenny Fihla, a senior financial services executive with 20 years of experience, as its new Group Chief Executive Officer, effective 17 June 2025, and subject to regulatory approval.
Absa Group began with the incorporation Amalgamated Banks of South Africa (ABSA) Limited in 1986 from a merger of the United Building Society Holdings South Africa, Allied Bank South Africa, Volkskas Bank Group and certain interests of the Sage Group. In 1992, ABSA acquired the entire shareholding of the Bankorp Group (which included TrustBank, Senbank and Bankfin). In 1997, ABSA changed the name of the holding company to ABSA Group Limited and adopted a new corporate identity. It consisted of four main operating divisions, whose brands; "United", "Volkskas", "Allied" and "TrustBank" brands were retired the following year in favor of the ABSA brand.
In May 2005, Barclays of the United Kingdom purchased 56.4 percent stake in Absa, which was criticized by the then-governor of the South African Reserve Bank, Tito Mboweni, who said he "had yet to see the benefits of Barclays' management of Absa". With the acquisition, Absa Group Limited was rebranded as Barclays Africa Group Limited.
Finweek Bank Charges Reports from 2008 through 2010 found Barclays Africa Group Holdings Limited to be the most expensive bank in South Africa. Pay-as-you-transact (PAYT) fees increased 82 percent from 2005 to 2010. The 2012, Finweek Bank Charges Report ranked Absa's Gold Value Bundle as the cheapest package option amongst the four banks that were compared. The report has also shown Absa's PAYT pricing structure to have reduced by 25 percent by 2013, leaving it third cheapest in the overall ranking at that time.
In 2013, the group acquired the entire issued share capital of Barclays Africa Limited and issued 129,540,636 consideration shares to Barclays Africa Group Holdings Limited (a wholly owned subsidiary of Barclays) thus increasing the shareholding of Barclays plc to 62.3 percent. The Consideration Shares were listed on the JSE from the commencement of trading on 31 July 2013. The name change from "Absa Group Limited" to "Barclays Africa Group Limited" was completed in August 2013.
In 2017, the South African Public Protector, Busisiwe Mkhwebane, found that the bailout of R1.125 billion that Absa's predecessor Bankorp Group had received between 1985 and 1992 from the Reserve Bank was illegal, and recommended that Absa be forced to pay back R2.25 billion, the current equivalent of the amount. The report was set aside by the Pretoria High Court, finding that "The public protector did not conduct herself in a manner which would be expected from a person occupying the office of the public protector." The court assessed some costs of the case personally against Mkhwebane due to her conduct, an order upheld by the Constitutional Court of South Africa in July 2019.
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