NIC, CBA merger begins to take shape as Gachora is picked to head the outfit

The current NIC Group managing director John Gachora has been picked to head the new outfit that will be formed out of the bank’s merger with Commercial Bank of Africa (CBA).

Mr Gachora will be in charge of the management of the merged outfit while his CBA counterpart, Isaac Awuondo, will become chairman of the Kenyan banking subsidiary and maintain direct oversight over the digital business.

The Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) Monday approved the proposed merger between Commercial Bank of Africa (CBA) and NIC Group, with a condition to retain all the employees for at least one year, this despite the two entities intimating there was a possibility of branch closures where overlaps existed.

The proposed merger will see CBA shareholders exchange their CBA shares for 53 per cent of the new shares in NIC, which will be the non-operating holding company for the merged entity, with shareholders of CBA, with 98.15 per cent stake of the issued and fully paid up share capital have already accepted the deal.

“The merged group will operate under a new name and brand, which will be determined prior to concluding the merger. The combined entity’s board of directors and executive management team will also be well balanced between the two institutions,” said the two banks in a joint statement.

Should the deal go through, it will mark the first major merger in the sector since the government imposed a cap on commercial interest rates in 2016.

John Gachora is an electrical engineer and bank executive in Kenya, the largest economy in the East African Community. NIC Bank Group ,is a banking conglomerate, with subsidiaries in Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda.