Comment: Barclays' South African Bid Provides A Litmus Test - South Africa's Market Potential Lies In Extending Services To Poorer, Unbanked Areas, So How Will A Foreign Bank Fair In This Environment?

Banker, The, November, 2004

Barclays has upped the stakes in Africa with its oe2bn bid for ABSA Group, one of South Africa's so-called Big Four banks with close to oe30bn in assets. Other foreign banks, including Standard Chartered, are believed to be circling.

Should the deal be approved, analysts are tipping Barclays to unlock significant value in ABSA, which many believe still carries the flab of the 1991 merger of four separate banks that was its origin. The combination of Barclays' strong balance sheet and considerable know-how will appeal to South African corporates and inward investors.

But Barclays will know that South Africa's future market potential - and indeed the entire continent's potential - depends not just on clawing away market share in traditional, well-served...

Read the rest of this article with a Free Trial at HighBeam Research.

Premium Content Partnership | HighBeam Research provides an in-depth online archive library of reference works.