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Washington DC, 10 August, 2023 – Vista Group has agreed with ECP, BIO, DEG, Proparco and Envol Afrique to acquire, subject to regulatory approvals, 61.4% of Oragroup S.A, the holding company of Orabank based in Lomé and operating in 12 West and Central African countries (Togo, Cote D’Ivoire, Benin, Senegal, Burkina-Faso, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Tchad, Gabon, Mauritania) with total assets of $7.7 billion as of end of 2022. The entities (Vista and Oragroup) will create a Tier 1 banking group covering 16 countries with more than 270 branches and represent total combined assets of more than $10 billion.
This new acquisition by the Vista Group now significantly extends its presence to other markets and geographical areas (100% of WAEMU, 50% of WAMZ, 35% of CEMAC) in Africa, in line with the Group’s strategic target of becoming a leading pan-African banking institution operating in at least 25 countries by 2025-26 to promote financial inclusion, trade and intra-african trade.
As Moody’s Investors Services reported in June this year Orabank’s underlying profitability is embedded by its growing franchise, large exposure to fast growing Francophone West Africa, robust credit growth, strong deposit-based funding combined with strong liquidity, would be a significant added value to Vista Group.
Vista’s ambition is to be a leading pan-African group by reaching a wide range of customers with precisely designed products that would enable it to build an integrated efficient banking and insurance group, capable of delivering innovative customer-oriented products and services.
Simon Tiemtore, Chairman of Vista Group said: “The acquisition of Oragroup is a significant milestone in our growth strategy to become a pan-African financial services group with operations in 25 countries and be a catalyst of economic development. Vista is now well positioned to support the development plan, trade and infrastructure investment of three fast growing major economic zones, the WAMZ, the WAEMU and the CEMAC.”
The Vista Group whose main objective is to contribute to economic and financial inclusion in Africa through its subsidiaries and branches, is owned by Lilium Group (US) and prides itself in providing a full range of innovative and accessible banking services to everyone, especially women and SMEs, to drive financial inclusion, economic growth and prosperity in its countries of operation.
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Deborah Ross
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deborah.ross@brandcommsgroup.com
About Vista Group
Vista Group (Vista) is a financial services holding company with the objective of building a world-class pan-African financial institution group and contributing to economic and financial inclusion in Africa.
Vista has entered into strategic partnerships with various global financial institutions to drive its growth strategy by focusing on MSME (SME banking, leasing, mesofinance, banking on women), trade and supply chain finance, bancassurance increasing profitability while controlling operating costs and mitigating risks.
Vista is focused on maximising the opportunities in its respective markets to become the financial institution of choice through innovative banking and insurance products.