Fidelity Bank Plc, has said it plans to expand in at least five African countries after finalising the acquisition of the London unit of rival Union Bank of Nigeria Plc.
The 35-year-old institution is negotiating a second purchase, chief executive offficer Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe said, without identifying the target. The lender expects to complete the transaction this year, she said.
“The strategy is for us to move footprint outside Nigeria and be able to compete favorably with our peers,” Onyeali-Ikpe told Bloomberg in a phone interview from Lagos, the country’s commercial hub. “In the next three years, we should be able to be in six countries by doing at least two every year.”
Fidelity is racing to expand and avoid losing out on fees from facilitating trade and corresponding banking roles to larger rivals.
