(Ecofin Agency) - The South African banking group Nedbank, extended its asset management activities to West Africa in partnership with the pan-African bank Ecobank Transnational, in which it is the major stakeholder, Bloomberg reported on November 1, 2018, citing one of the group's managers.  

"Nedbank started offering wealth products to the pan-African company’s clients in Ivory Coast and wants to replicate the service in Senegal. Benin and Burkina Faso may follow thereafter” , said Mark Weston, manager in charge of investments in the South African bank. "If we’re going to get value out of our relationship with Ecobank, we really have to explore what we can do here (in West Africa)",  he added.

Rufaro Mucheka, head of strategy and continental operations outside South Africa for Nedbank, indicated that the group is planning an expansion in Ghana in 2019.

The initiative of Nedbank which owns 21% stake in Ecobank occurs in the context of an inclination of giants of the banking industry towards expansions in West Africa, a region which has been experiencing strong economic growth.

For instance, the American Citigroup plans to use Côte d’Ivoire as a strategic country to target other countries in the region while Standard Bank, the leading African bank in terms of assets, is now eyeing Senegal following the establishment of a subsidiary in Côte d’Ivoire.