KEY POINTS

• Access Bank expansion continues with the takeover of Standard Chartered Cameroon.
• It’s expansion strengthens its corporate and retail banking reach.
• Access Bank expansion supports the group’s rising earnings and asset growth.

Access Holdings Plc has added another piece to its growing African footprint. The Nigerian financial group, led by Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, has finalized the acquisition of Standard Chartered Bank Cameroon.

Therefore tightening its grip on a cluster of African subsidiaries shed by the British lender in recent years. The deal deepens Access Bank’s presence in Central Africa and boosts its ambition to operate as one of the continent’s most connected financial networks.

Standard Chartered confirmed the transfer in a Dec. 5 statement, marking another step in its exit from several African and Middle Eastern markets. With the takeover complete, Access Bank now runs Standard Chartered’s Cameroonian franchise, opening the door to a bigger corporate and enterprise banking business, plus a more seamless cross-border payments platform for customers.

Standard Chartered exit and regional expansion

The move sits within Standard Chartered’s 2022 restructuring plan to streamline operations across Africa and the Middle East. That blueprint included full exits from Angola, Cameroon, Gambia, Jordan, Lebanon, Sierra Leone and Zimbabwe, alongside scaled-back operations in Tanzania and Côte d’Ivoire.

Access Bank has since scooped up Standard Chartered’s former businesses in Angola, Botswana, Zambia, Gambia, Sierra Leone and Tanzania, a string of acquisitions that signal a steady Access Bank expansion across the continent.

Before this deal, Access Bank Cameroon served more than 22,000 customers across five branches in Douala and Yaoundé. Adding Standard Chartered Bank Cameroon is expected to widen its client base and sharpen its product offerings for both individuals and corporate clients. The unit has already shown momentum: deposits surged 85 percent in 2024 to CFA146 billion ($259.3 million), while customer loans reached CFA17 billion ($30.2 million).

Access Bank expansion drives group performance

Access Holdings, headquartered in Lagos, now serves more than 60 million customers across 20 countries in Africa, Europe and Asia.

According to Billionaires Africa, since Aig-Imoukhuede’s return in 2024, the group has doubled down on capital strengthening, digital banking and building dependable revenue lines.

In the first half of 2025, gross earnings rose to N2.49 trillion ($1.7 billion), while total assets rose to N42.45 trillion ($28.8 billion). This was due to broad-based growth, which was partly due to Access Bank’s continued expansion efforts.