• Manzima Holding, controlled by the Diagou family, now owns nearly 69% of NSIA Participations.
• The shift follows the purchase of shares from the National Bank of Canada, which exits the group.
• The move is part of a broader strategy to bring NSIA fully back under Ivorian control.

Manzima Holding SA, the family investment vehicle of Ivorian businessman Jean Kacou Diagou, has increased its stake in NSIA Participations from 46.67% to 68.73%. The change in ownership comes after the company acquired the 22.6% stake held by the National Bank of Canada, which is now exiting the group. The value of the deal was not disclosed.

NSIA Participations is the holding company behind the NSIA Group, a financial services provider active in life and non-life insurance, as well as banking, across 12 countries in sub-Saharan Africa, mainly in West and Central Africa.

This latest move continues a consolidation effort that began in 2024. In March of that year, Manzima Holding had already acquired the 6% stake previously held by private equity firm Amethis. That transaction was financed through a CFA22.958 billion loan from the West African Development Bank (BOAD).

Together, these deals reflect a long-term strategy by Jean Kacou Diagou to regain majority control of the group he founded, using his family’s holding company. NSIA Participations was created to manage and structure the group’s presence across its subsidiaries in insurance, banking, and financial services.

With nearly 69% ownership, Manzima Holding is now the main shareholder of NSIA Participations. Swiss Re, the Swiss reinsurer, remains a shareholder as well. It invested around $112 million in June 2017 to join the group’s capital, although its current ownership level has not been made public.

“Now that the National Bank of Canada has exited, NSIA is better positioned to move forward with confidence and build a strong financial holding company that can serve its clients and partners more effectively,” said Jean Kacou Diagou.

The National Bank of Canada (BNC) joined the board of NSIA Participations in March 2015 by jointly purchasing the shares of the ECP Africa III fund from Emerging Capital Partners, which was then a shareholder of NSIA.